Siblings are the people we practice on, the people who teach us about fairness and cooperation and kindness and caring - quite often the hard way. ~Pamela Dugdale
Since we've all been home, there have been some intense moments of sibling teasing, rivalry-- whatever you want to call it-- just plain not getting along. The instigator is Caelan. The victim is Evelynn more than half the time. Caelan really enjoys rocking Evelynn's little world. It's something we're working very hard to correct, but there are moments when you just want to laugh. It's cute when they're two, but it won't be so cute when they're older. Tonight's incident made it very difficult not to laugh. Okay, maybe I did laugh, but I had to leave the room.
Both girls were eating dinner while I was folding laundry. Evelynn's typical cry of someone done completely wrong filled the kitchen. Caelan thought it would be fun to ignore the food in her bowl and take Evelynn's. This is a particular favorite of Caelan's; to take/eat something that Evelynn is playing/eating with. Evelynn, to Caelan's delight, was horrified at the injustice. Caelan had some serious wicked giggles, full of mirth. And per the usual, I told Caelan not to take her food or continue to pick on her sister. Caelan just laughed, "Otay." The okay was not in her eyes, even as I saw her reach towards Evelynn's bowl again. The warning words of "you better not or you will be in trouble" followed and Caelan laughed again, "Otay."
I tried to impart the wisdom of why she shouldn't tease her sister, why it's not nice to take things from other people, especially if the only reason is to make them upset. The child still laughed, "Otay." She is clearly not taking this instruction. So I told her it was not funny. Caelan looked at Evelynn, giggled and said, "Yes, it is funny." The look of daggers did not pierce the child's nerve. I took one step towards her and it was amazing the difference that one step made. "Otay, Mama, it's not funny. I'm sorry Evelynn." Yes, I had to leave the room. One day, maybe-- hopefully-- she'll get it and Evelynn will forgive her for all the wrongs.
"She is your mirror, shining back at you with a world of possibilities. She is your witness, who sees you at your worst and best, and loves you anyway. She is your partner in crime, your midnight companion, someone who knows when you are smiling, even in the dark. She is your teacher, your defense attorney, your personal press agent, even your shrink. Some days, she's the reason you wish you were an only child." ~Barbara Alpert
