The Indignation of Children

My kids can be awfully hard on one another, despite many warnings, admonitions, exhortations and disciplining. But let some outsider do damage to one of them and it is amazing to see how quickly they close ranks and turn on the outsider.

The outsider today was the two year old daughter of one of my clients. While she was being looked after by her grandmother in my living room, she turned on baby Elodie and bit her hard on the cheek -- hard enough to leave a prominent set of teeth marks. Elodie's heart-rending sobs brought all the siblings running and one and all looked darkly at the offender who was hauled off by her horrified mother to the metaphorical woodshed in our bathroom. I had the feeling that they would have loved to have been the ones to administer the discipline.

So while I am sad that Elodie's cheek is decorated with a ring of teeth marks, I am at the same time gratified to see that my children do love each other, and baby especially, to the point that they will stand up for and defend one another.

This reminds me of an incident from my childhood. My sister and I were at odds a lot of the time. There were only the two of us and I was the elder. Our relationship was not the closest or most loving, especially as my sister took great delight in provoking me to the point of madness and retaliation in self defense, whereupon she would run to mother with a tale of woe over what I had done to her. This usually meant a spanking or some other form of discipline for me. I didn't cherish loving thoughts towards her most of the time.

One time we were being babysat by an aunt by marriage in an old apartment complex. One of the children across the way was envious of my sister's long, luxurious black hair that hung to her waist, and in a fit of jealousy yanked a huge chunk of it out of her head and left a bald patch. My poor sister cried her eyes out in pain and humiliation, and I cried my eyes out with rage. I was only about 8 or so at the time, but I remember having murderous anger in my heart for the perpetrator. How dare she do that to my sister? I wanted to do the same to her. Good thing she was out of reach.