Circus Circus part 6: TELL TELL TALE

If you're just tuning in here, I encourage you to start at the beginning.

So, the kids are good for a while. We four are sitting at the table and decide it would be fun to play FARKEL. If you've not played this, then I encourage you to get six dice and learn. It's one of the most fun games there is. Anyway, we're playing and my cell phone rings. I already know who it is without looking and I feel my face flush and my heart rate speed up as I gather courage to tattle on myself.

Remember JD is at an Elders' Retreat. He's been hanging out with a group of wise, God-fearing, gentlemen who help run the church. He's been praying and worshiping and strategizing what to do to make the church better. He's been loved on and prayed over and cared for by the Elders who really are great men. He's in a good place mentally, spiritually and probably even physically. I anticipate this when I answer the phone.

We chit-chat for a few minutes and then I hint that I may have done something that he will consider "mean." He immediately wants to know what went down. Without hardly ANY of the details you've just read, I let him know that after the worst melt-down in Colin history, I've thrown his pi in the trash. As I expected JD is NOT happy with me. He's not happy about the situation and he's very concerned for Colin. He asks if I have another pi. I tell him, "Of course. But since he thinks that was the only one, why don't we see how long we can go without it." I relay the conversation about the trash-man and the possible letter to the trash-man. He's chewing on that idea I can tell. We talk about it a little more but I know that he's just mad and talking about it more will just make him madder. He tells me that he doesn't think what I did was mean. He thinks that what I did was cruel. Great. I feel so much better now. He then asks to talk to Colin. Okee Dokee.

I take the phone to Colin who's watching TV with Katreena. I say, "Daddy's on the phone. You wanna talk to him?" Colin jumps at the chance. I have Daddy on speaker phone cuz I want to make sure I can hear Daddy and I also usually have to interpret for JD as Colin jumps from topic to topic without much detail. They talk about the trip there. They talk about swimming. They talk about Katreena and Neenie (my Mom). Then Colin pulls the phone away from his mouth and he says to me, "Mom, I'm gonna tell him about my pi, okay?" I love that he asks permission to tattle on his mom to his dad. That's great. I say, "Go ahead." To be honest, I'm quite curious about how my son is about to depict the last few hours.

Here's the conversation word for word to the best of my memory. JD might come in later and give me a corrected version but this is what I remember.

C: "Daddy, Mommy threw my pi in the trash."
J: "What?" (Not what as in WHAT! but what as in, can you repeat that please.)
C: "Mommy threw my pi in the trash."
J: "Mommy threw your pi in the trash?"
C: "Yeah."
J: "Why did Mommy throw your pi in the trash?"
C: "Because I was acting ugly."
J: "You were acting ugly?"
C: "Yeah."
J: "Oh. I see."
C: "The trash-man took it away."
J: "The trash-man took it?"
C: "Yeah."
pause pause
J: "Well, buddy when you act ugly then things like that are going to happen."
C: "Yeah."
J; "I'm sorry the trash-man took your pi. Are you okay?"
C: "Yeah. I miss my pi"
J: "I understand. I'm really sorry buddy. I love you."
C: "Yeah. Here's Mommy."

At this point, my husband should get the standing ovation from the MOPS convention. I was so relieved he supported me. Angry or not, he united with me. I knew this was not the end of it but I at least was not dismissed to my room forever. And he was wise enough to know that he didn't have the complete story and that I am not usually a mean mother and that whatever the circumstances were that had brought us to this point, deserved a fair shake before he undid the decision or altered the course. I've married a wise, thoughtful, wonderful man.

....to be continued