In an artefacts shop.
My 5-year old is excited and curious.
Is trying to touch things on display, pestering us to let him ‘try’ a few that he seems to like.
A bit annoyed, I explain to him that these are not toys. He should avoid touching them lest he broke something. These are delicate display pieces meant just for seeing and admiring, not for playing
He looks sad and puzzled.
Next day, at home…
He: I have a surprise for you.
Me: oh, sure tell me what it is.
He: remember that shop we went to yesterday but you didn’t buy anything?
I nod.
He continues - “I was feeling bad for mumma and you. So I made a display piece for you guys”
And then he shows us: broken parts of a toy helicopter we had bought for him a few days back, neatly arranged on our TV console.
My wife and I look at each other, wondering how to respond. Meanwhile, he stares at us with anticipation in his eyes, trying to gauze our reaction.
This was a surreal parenting moment. Hard to tell whether this act from him represented an overload of innocence or the beginning of its loss.
Like an average 5 year old, he loves to fiddle with his toys. Like an average parent, we love to reprimand him every time he disassembles them, usually within a day or two of buying. The cycle repeats.
This time it was different. He had successfully taken us for a ride on his broken helicopter. And, as parents, we are not complaining.
All we hope is that as he embarks on his journey of acquiring worldly intelligence, he retains a bit of his childlike curiosity and innocence.
#parenting #innocence #intelligence