Parenthood In Any Language

A couple of days ago, my family was walking into IHOP to meet some friends for brunch. As we made our way through the parking lot, we passed a family of four on their way out. As they approached their car, the mother said something in Spanish to the kids, who were probably about eight and five years old. The kids replied, opened the back door to the car and the five year old climbed in.

The eight year old remained outside. By this time, I was at an angle where I couldn’t really see what he was up to…but I knew he hadn’t yet gotten in the car.

The mom said something else in Spanish, this time a bit more sharply. Then, in a tone of warning that every parent knows and I suspect just about every child has heard, she began counting. Slowly.

“Uno…”

(Pause)

(with a bit more emphasis) “DOS…….”

And, as most children do, the child waited until about "dos and a half" to jump in the car, just in the nick of time.

Just goes to show—no matter the culture, no matter the language, parents will be parents…and kids will be kids.

LH