Weekends and holidays in the Mathews household is known for early rising. On school days, mornings here, as with other normal households, is a test of patience, where everything from wake up calls to bathroom routines start with polite calling, cajoling, begging, pleading and finally ends with screams, shouts and threats of dire bodily harm, even possibility of dismemberment before there is any indication of even leaving the bed. But on weekends, it's like the Mathews household is transported to a different land altogether like the Land of Topsy Turvy in Enid Blyton books, where there is a definite role reversal, wake up call routine is the same of course, starts with polite calling, cajoling, begging but ends at pleading. This is so because from screaming to the right of bodily harm and threats of dismemberment rest solely with the parents. The Law of Parenthood clearly state that children do not have the right to threaten or cause bodily harm or dismemberment to parents. (We parents, as the rule makers of course, have the right to amend, modify or even rewrite the rules as we plod blindly along the long and treacherous path of parenthood.)
As there happened to be a digression from the norm on this particular day, noting the date, so that its preserved for posterity, 15th November, 2014, a day when, unlike the norm on weekends started not at the usual 5 AM, but at 8 AM. Well, be that as it may, today was another day of deep thoughts and questions. Aben (Abraham) as usual has to ask questions that simply stumps me. Today's being, "Mama, what is the difference between a girl and a boy?"
Me being the chicken that I am and because I am totally unprepared to answer this question started off with girls like dolls, boys like cars... Of course the joy of sleeping in suddenly vanished, the boy has to do his bit I guess in making mornings tortuous because he interrupts and says, "No mama, I mean the body." GULP! My mind raced, what to tell him, how much to tell him even considered going back to sleep. Well, I thought to myself, the boy has asked and it required an answer, so I explained in what best manner I could about the basic differences, of how women have breasts so that they can feed and how men have penises. Stopped the discussion there, escapism, temporary reprieve, call it what you may I admit to being a chicken here.
The point here is as a parent, these questions are bound to come, next I am sure will be procreation. How to tackle that one I wonder? Suggestions anyone? Or even better, can I simply refer the question to someone?
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