Red-letter day for Paidhi Boy!
Jul. 25th, 2006 04:34 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ann_leckieToday, Paidhi Boy swam the prescribed length--the length that would convince me he was ready for the deep pool, and the diving board.
As soon as I certified that he had, indeed, done it, he went straight to the board, climbed up, stood on the end...and climbed back down. It was too scary. He tried several more times, and just couldn't bring himself to do it, so we went to the 5ft end and he jumped off the edge and swam back, and then to the twelve foot end and did the same, and then up to the diving board...and got back down again.
It took him a good twenty minutes, but he finally did it. With his eyes closed, and his nose plugged, after thirty seconds or so of standing on the end screwing up his courage. Fortunately, the other kids were surprisingly cool about it. My first try at the diving board (I was much older), I backed down and was jeered mercilessly by the other kids in line. Paidhi Boy had better luck. "Is this his first time?" one boy asked me.
"Yes," I said. "It's very scary at first."
"I know!" he said, very good natured, and got in line again.
Anyway. Shortly afterwards, he said to me, "I was scared to jump. But when I jumped off before, when you weren't looking, I wasn't scared."
"That's because you didn't know what you were getting into," I said.
He heaved a sigh. "I know. My apologize." Not apologies. I'm still trying to figure out where he got that, and the sigh. They go together--he did it again later.
Anyway, he can't wait to tell Mr. Cameron when he gets home.
Back home, Paidhi Girl is learning to read recipes, and she's in charge of supper tonight. She picked the menu, she's doing most of the preparation. And I'm feeling slightly evil, and knowing what her reaction will be if I happen to mention that we're having beer-can dinosaur for supper, I'm sorely tempted to do it...
As soon as I certified that he had, indeed, done it, he went straight to the board, climbed up, stood on the end...and climbed back down. It was too scary. He tried several more times, and just couldn't bring himself to do it, so we went to the 5ft end and he jumped off the edge and swam back, and then to the twelve foot end and did the same, and then up to the diving board...and got back down again.
It took him a good twenty minutes, but he finally did it. With his eyes closed, and his nose plugged, after thirty seconds or so of standing on the end screwing up his courage. Fortunately, the other kids were surprisingly cool about it. My first try at the diving board (I was much older), I backed down and was jeered mercilessly by the other kids in line. Paidhi Boy had better luck. "Is this his first time?" one boy asked me.
"Yes," I said. "It's very scary at first."
"I know!" he said, very good natured, and got in line again.
Anyway. Shortly afterwards, he said to me, "I was scared to jump. But when I jumped off before, when you weren't looking, I wasn't scared."
"That's because you didn't know what you were getting into," I said.
He heaved a sigh. "I know. My apologize." Not apologies. I'm still trying to figure out where he got that, and the sigh. They go together--he did it again later.
Anyway, he can't wait to tell Mr. Cameron when he gets home.
Back home, Paidhi Girl is learning to read recipes, and she's in charge of supper tonight. She picked the menu, she's doing most of the preparation. And I'm feeling slightly evil, and knowing what her reaction will be if I happen to mention that we're having beer-can dinosaur for supper, I'm sorely tempted to do it...