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Sneaky kids following in dad's footsteps
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Published: September 10, 2008
I was one of the sneakiest children I've ever known. Night after night, after the lights were turned off and I got my goodnight kiss, I would pad across the room to my bookshelf and pull out the night's text. I'd slither back into bed and, ears pricked for parental footfalls, I'd read by the dim light seeping past the mostly-closed closet door.
I could usually hear the tread on the floor outside my bedroom, no matter how stealthily my parents approached. They rarely caught me. I was particularly proud of my scheme to read facing away from the door, so on the rare occasions Mom or Dad would catch me off-guard, I could just surreptitiously close the book and hide it with my body. Oh, I was good. Others would prattle on about their feats of subterfuge and misdirection, but when it came to reading after lights out, I was without peer.
Or so my mom and dad let me believe. Neither my mom nor my dad ever told me they knew what I was doing all along; I just gradually figured it out. Eventually it evolved into a "don't ask, don't tell" — and don't get caught.
Now, it's my turn. I'm pretty confident that neither of my children yet know I know what they're doing, and I must say my oldest isn't quite as sneaky as I was. (At least I don't think she is.)
The sneaking methods my kids use are remarkably similar to the ones I used, though. The "sleeping with back to door" trick, obviously. A fear of the dark that conveniently requires a closet light or bright nightlight be left on, or the "I just want the flashlight to make shadow animals for a few minutes."
My oldest has one of those cheap fiber-optic LED lights she got, amusingly enough, from selling cookies. She sometimes uses the LED base as her illumination. That way, if my wife or I raid her room, she can claim that, gosh, the plastic fibers simply fell out a moment before, and she was just putting them back in.
Ultimately, just as it was with me, the kids will realize that their parents do indeed know, but will recognize that ancient accord between kids and parents that tolerates reading in bed after lights out.
Some may frown at this winking at disobedience, thinking it will eventually result in nose piercings and an appreciation of Marilyn Manson. I don't think so. They are, after all, reading. Despite my childhood defiance, I have an unpierced nose and my musical tastes, while eclectic, do not include Manson. I overlook this "rule breaking" because they are reading of their own volition. My wife and I know they know we're checking on them. As it did for me, it makes them feel even more secure nestled in their bed, book in hand, knowing mom and dad are nearby, God is in his heaven, and at least for the moment, all is right with the world.
joe melton is a stay-at-home father living in the Lake Norman area. E-mail him at jmelt@live.com
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