On this last weekend before Christmas I headed to Brattleboro, VT., home of the quaint and homespun. Streets were bustling, sites like these included carolers, windows seductively foreshadowing the seasons offerings, artists having front and center billing in the twinkling lights.
I walked over to one of my favorite stores, "Twice Upon a Time", went to open the door and saw that a young boy and his dad (or someone acting in that role)were on their way out, I stepped aside and held the door. All smiles in my heart, rejoicing in the spirit of the season and all, I looked down at the child as he looked right into my eyes. He raised his right hand to his waist as if it was a gun and mouthed the word 'kill'. Wow, what a buzzkill.This left me conflicted after the hairs laid down on the back of my neck. Should I have called him on this? The parent saw nothing as the child was uber discreet, adding to the creep factor. I know we assign our adult interpretations to things that we observe and deem appropriate (or not so) but this child knew he was wrong, I believe, or he wouldn't have acted so secretively. I guess the part that disturbs me is that the killing is everywhere, is it any wonder that it is just another expression...maybe this kids way of saying, 'lady, get out of my way'?
3 comments:
I think I would have said something...kids say and do dorky things, but they don't expect you to meet them at their level.... maybe he meant he wanted to kill his father for dragging him into Christmas shopping. I would have said something like... hmmm.. is that loaded? Do you have a license to carry? Something like that...
Yikes, Gail. I wonder what this kid's home life is like if he is so angry. It is a very scary time. On the flip side,
there are some wonderful, kind people in the world. You for instance are a shining example of beauty and loving kindness.
Sally, I wish I were that quick! I was stunned.
Jeannette, thank you for the sweet words. You know your comment is thought provoking. I don't know if his home life is good or bad or just the way it is. I guess that this is the thought provoking part of this story. The burning question to me is, what did this mean to that kid? was it just a 'lady get out of my way' thing or a desire to eliminate me or shock value? To me this is where the culture of video games, etc. blur the line between fantasy and reality, and I think that it makes the leap easier.
So much for speculation, maybe next time I will be able to respond and ask the right questions.
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