My first born turns 19 tomorrow. Sigh. Blink of an eye.
When I had her, I stopped watching TV. I knew she'd follow what I did and am a strong believer in walking your talk. That lasted for about 14 years . . . I honestly never missed it. TV snuck back in when someone told us about Modern Family and we watched it once or twice on Hulu. Then it became an addiction, as did The Goldbergs. We still don't watch a lot (and I'm not anti TV, or anti - anything . . . remember, when you shout "NO!" at something, you include it in your vibration), but I do love a good snuggle on the couch with my five chickens while watching an episode of either of these well written shows. I like to watch only one episode though, even though it does pull you in to watch more. One episode feels fun, two, for me, makes me feel a little disconnected.
My first two children were never interested in guns - it never came up. Then I had Phoenix, age 9 now, and he asked for a nerf gun from time to time, and the answer was always no. He never pushed it.
Dakota and Montana, now six, asked once in a while too. "Nope," I would say. "I don't believe in guns or violence." I didn't waiver.
Then on Friday night my brother was visiting our new home in Barrington, Rhode Island for the first time and nerf guns came up somehow and my boys told him that I wouldn't let them have them - or any type of guns. My brother was cute and said, "Well, they aren't that great anyhow."
Saturday I was at a yard sale and there they were, three nerf guns, for a buck each, annnnnd . . . I bought 'em. When I got home, and presented them to my sons, well, there's really no way to describe their elation. Phoenix was shaking as he described how he'd been on the internet all morning researching nerf guns (synchronicity) . . . and he was looking at the exact model I'd bought him (for a buck). He said, "Mommy! It costs $86!" (Score! I love yard sales).
In the hours that followed, I watched those boys get more joy outta those two one dolla nerf guns than I could ever dream possible. Hours and hours and hours, they ran through the yard and played, and it continued till night fall. As I watched them, I wondered why I had paddled upstream for so long around this topic. Why I'd been so adamant that they could not have this toy. I am all about peace and love, but when I forbade the oh so elusive nerf gun, they used sticks to pretend the **** anyhow.
The intention of this blog is not to start a big political debate (although if it does, that's ok too), I am simply suggesting that it's important that I (read: we all) take a look at whether we are paddling upstream in our lives, and if so, why. Maybe we make a slight adjustment, maybe we bend a little, if they result might just be -- pure joy.