How could I argue with such a solid plan? And Calvin was
actually a pretty cute name for a pet…even a pet mouse. So being the great mom
sucker that I was, Olivia joyfully picked up one of the babies and hurried to
the house to get him settled in his new home.
A week or so later, however, Calvin decided to venture out
of his home. He was on the loose in the house! We set traps (not the
life-ending kind) and watched for signs of where he was or had been. Nothing.
Calvin was nowhere to be found. I kept up my vigil for two or three weeks, but
when there were no signs of him, I gave up; assuming he had made his way back
to the feed shed or barn. Wrong!
After the last day of school prior to Christmas break, I was
cleaning out Olivia’s backpack and guess what I found? No, not Calvin ‘in the
flesh’, but evidence Calvin had been there—shredded tissues, hard candy from
the art teacher Calvin had obviously found to be rather tasty, and a few other ‘things’.
In other words, Calvin had gone to school with Olivia and for all I knew, was
still there! Maybe ignoring his disappearance hadn’t been such a good idea
after all.
A day or two after Christmas Calvin found his way into one
of the traps we’d set for him in the girls’ closet. Apparently he preferred home to school. But that didn’t matter. Calvin didn’t get a second chance
at being a pet.
The adventures of Calvin taught Olivia a valuable lesson in
why not to take a mouse in as a pet. But the adventures of Calvin taught me
something even more important. Calvin’s adventures taught me that problems aren’t
solved by ignoring them or pretending they aren’t there. Ignoring or denying a
problem exists only makes it worse and increases its radius of potential harm.
So if your child is having trouble in school, address the
issue and get them the help they need. If your child is consistently
misbehaving, showing disrespect, or acting out, don’t brush it off as ‘just a
stage’. Let your child know their behavior is unacceptable, teach them the appropriate
optional behavior, and let them experience the consequences of not making the
switch. If your child shows signs of being bullied, having anxiety, eating
disorders, using drugs or alcohol, or any other harmful behavior, don’t deny it
could be happening to your child, because it can. Don’t settle for anything
less than getting them the help they need. It might possibly save their life.
I can’t believe I’m going to say this, but thanks, Calvin.
Love,
Momma D