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On a typical Saturday morning, I was in the kitchen busy placing the grocery items in the cupboard, fresh meat in the freezer, and the vegetables in the crisper. My husband and younger son, Ryu, aged 2, were still asleep. Brad, aged 4, was watching Cartoon Network at the living room. After a while, I started preparing food for lunch.
I remember I was cutting purple (not pumpink) onions because my eyes were tearing like when I watched Jack slowly sinking into the sea, frozen, lifeless, while Rose looked on grievously trembling in the cold.
“Mommy…”, Brad called, but for some reasons, maybe the high volume of the TV and that I was so engrossed with what I was doing I didn’t respond.
“Mommy…”, Brad called again with a slightly louder voice, but I still
focused on my cooking and didn't respond.
Frustrated, Brad shouted, more like growled, ”MOMMY!!!!”
I stopped what I was doing and went to him and asked, “Brad, don’t shout…”
Very upset, he replied loudly, “I’ve been calling you but you were not responding!”
“I’m sorry I was busy. But you shouldn’t shout. You can come to me instead…”
“Why can’t I shout?! How come adults can shout but children can’t?!”, still shouting with a frown.
That time, my husband woke up, came down the stairs, and said with a low, firm voice, “Brad, you are not supposed to be shouting at your Mom.”
“She was not responding to me, so I shouted so she can hear me! And now you are scolding me for shouting! How come adults can shout but children can’t?! I don’t understand!”, Brad argued.
My husband and I looked at each other, wondering how we should respond to such question. We need to answer quickly…and correctly. But how? Tic, tac, tic, tac, tic, tac...It was like forever.
Suddenly, my husband held Brad's arms gently and said, “Okay, Brad, from now on, nobody shouts.”
And the day passed by peacefully. Sssshhhh….
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