I am recounting a story told to me by my four-year-old daughter today right after a discussion about who is “wild” in her class.
Mad: “Mommy, was I wild when I was like 1 or 2?”
Me: “No, you weren’t. But you’re pretty wild now.” (laughing)
Mad: (very serious) “Mommy, I know why I’m so wild now. I have to tell you something. It’s because when I was 3 I was always sneaking into the kitchen and eating sugar. Ephraim was with me a couple of times.”
Me: (Busting out laughing) “But that was when you were 3. You’re four now.”
Mad: “Well, on my fourth birthday I knew that I would have to stop. Because one time Daddy caught me.”
Me: “Oh, I see.”
Mad: “Here’s how it would happen. Whenever you were on the couch in the living room, Ephraim and I would sneak into the kitchen and get sugar. So it made me wild.”
This is great! It reminds me of the time my sister and I started spooning sugar out of the canister my mother kept it in. When she caught us, we confessed that we did it because we wanted false teeth like Grandpa.
That’s so funny. And rings true.