Together we are vincible
Fight Cub
Sometimes I think our oldest boy (aged 6) has developed some rare and little known strain of Tourette's. The main characteristic of this particular version of the condition being the uncontrollable and compulsive urge to play fight. No matter where we are or who we're with, he can spontaneously play fight (with himself, I must point out). If we're at home and aren't sure where he is, one glance out of the window and there he is, in the garden, battling. On the allotment...battling. At church...battling. Train station...battling. Dentist...well, you get the picture.
OK, it's probably my fault. I'm the one that ordered the TV On Demand package. I'm the one that thought it would be great for the kids. And yes, I'm the one that lets both boys (even our 3 year old for heaven's sake!) watch Ben 10, practically whenever they want. And yes, I'm also the one that gets just as excited by new episodes of Alien Force.
It's not that they're telly addicts. Quite the contrary; they don't watch that much. But when they do, well, there's usually some kind of other-worldly mortal combat involved. And it's not like he's an introvert child, losing himself inside his own head (like I might of at his age). Thanks, largely I believe, to our intense and calculated positive parenting technique, he's an admirably confident child.
But wherever we are, whenever he feels like it or, as I suspect, whenever he can't help himself, some imaginary evil foe jumps out of the shadows to be beaten off my our very own transforming, assault-alien.
The other day, last Saturday in fact, we took ourselves off into the city centre for a bit of a shop. We don't do that very often nowadays so it was an adventure; great fun. Only for one of us the adventure didn't involve Urban Outfitters or coffee in Starbucks. No, for one of us the adventure involved much more insidious, life threatening forces.
Walking through the city's new swanky shopping centre, our oldest boy just a little bit ahead of us, what I saw was a small boy with arms flailing, legs a'leaping and a'kicking. And all to the human beat box-like soundtrack of growls and explosions.
It made me smile and part of me was proud of his vivid imagination but I also couldn't help wonder, what the hell does he look like to everyone else? Does anyone look on knowingly and think, "Ah yes...Tourette's".
OK, it's probably my fault. I'm the one that ordered the TV On Demand package. I'm the one that thought it would be great for the kids. And yes, I'm the one that lets both boys (even our 3 year old for heaven's sake!) watch Ben 10, practically whenever they want. And yes, I'm also the one that gets just as excited by new episodes of Alien Force.
It's not that they're telly addicts. Quite the contrary; they don't watch that much. But when they do, well, there's usually some kind of other-worldly mortal combat involved. And it's not like he's an introvert child, losing himself inside his own head (like I might of at his age). Thanks, largely I believe, to our intense and calculated positive parenting technique, he's an admirably confident child.
But wherever we are, whenever he feels like it or, as I suspect, whenever he can't help himself, some imaginary evil foe jumps out of the shadows to be beaten off my our very own transforming, assault-alien.
The other day, last Saturday in fact, we took ourselves off into the city centre for a bit of a shop. We don't do that very often nowadays so it was an adventure; great fun. Only for one of us the adventure didn't involve Urban Outfitters or coffee in Starbucks. No, for one of us the adventure involved much more insidious, life threatening forces.
Walking through the city's new swanky shopping centre, our oldest boy just a little bit ahead of us, what I saw was a small boy with arms flailing, legs a'leaping and a'kicking. And all to the human beat box-like soundtrack of growls and explosions.
It made me smile and part of me was proud of his vivid imagination but I also couldn't help wonder, what the hell does he look like to everyone else? Does anyone look on knowingly and think, "Ah yes...Tourette's".
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Comment by Ted on June 21, 2009 at 9:14am - Superb Richard, and so true for most boys - so don't worry, he's not a freak of nature!
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