Image by Leopictures from Pixabay
Eleven-year-old Velma Trent was disturbed.
“What's going on, Velma?” her mother Mrs. Melissa Trent said, and daughter and mother shared a big hug.
“I want to thank you and Dad for getting back together and loving each other, and your parents, too, because there was just no reason for all that separation when everybody knew they still loved each other, and I'm glad all y'all figured it out.”
“We are grateful too,” Mrs. Trent said as she snuggled her daughter. “I thank God every day.”
“Thank you for not just being horrible human beings!” Velma said. “Glendella has some stories that go right up there with some of the worst our family has to offer, but with some unique twists you can only get with crazy rich people. Like, her grandmother loves to get on the phone and talk about things being a cluster fork – do you know the type of mind that would even think like that in regular convos?”
Mrs. Trent felt herself blushing.
“I'm glad I don't, Velma.”
“I mean, that's torture – so forks all have a bend in them, so if you cluster them back to back and then put a couple more on the side, the tines aren't going to work together – the curve is going to force the tines in different directions, so every time you get one side loaded, the other sides are going to have food sliding off – and let's not even talk about eating foods that roll and trying to stab them with tines facing in different directions! It would take forever to eat peas, cherry tomatoes, brussel sprouts – well, nobody really wants to eat them anyway, but the torture of brussel sprouts would get even worse! And then let's say you could get all sides of that thing loaded up – how are you getting that into your mouth without knocking a tooth out?
“Can you imagine the type of brain you would have to have to just spend money having a thing like that designed and wanting to use that on people? Her grandma was just saying the other day that she would like to have a cluster fork with –.”
“Wait a minute, daughter,” Mrs. Trent said gently. “There are some stories and terms we do not need to repeat just because they are so bad. I know you are just telling me, and Glendella just got here so she doesn't know better, but this is where it's gotta stop.”
“OK, because Capt. and Mrs. Ludlow told Glendella the same,” Velma said. “I mean, they turned the color of those cherry tomatoes that you would never be able to stab with that thing, and I would be embarrassed too if one of my relatives was out here on some horrible foolishness like that! But yeah, this falls under stuff we don't pick up saying from other people.”
“Exactly, because we are holy people, and so we don't represent the horrible in our daily speech – you can tell me anything, Velma, but let's not be repeating it, OK?”
“OK.”
At dinner, Velma noticed her mother only put out a spoon and a knife for her, and smiled.
“Mom just gets it,” she said in prayer before going to bed, “and Lord, I thank You.”
I loved Velma's sharp wit and humor, especially when she described the "cluster fork" concept. Her mom's gentle guidance on what's appropriate to discuss was sweet, and Velma's understanding and respect for her mom's values showed her maturity. The dinner scene with just a spoon and knife was a nice touch.
I am basically Velma's mom to a number of my students ... they come with some stories ... that came back to mind with this prompt!
Ohh that’s great
Good job
Thank yo to @ewkaw and @qurator for the curation!
I have heard many children saying things that when I was a child, and I would say it goes for you, too, we would have regretted saying them after our parents were done with us and not ever repeat them either.
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!LOL
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Fo Drizzle.
Credit: reddit
@deeanndmathews, I sent you an $LOLZ on behalf of myjob
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Yep ... I took a gentler approach with this prompt to model a different way. Neither Velma or Glendella understood what Big Glendella should not have been saying in Baby Glendella's presence ...if anyone needs punishment, it is Big Glendella ... the children just need to get an understanding. Velma understood that it was a bad thing to say, and gave Glendella a way to understand too that does not require sacrificing their innocence just yet ... although, like Gracie misunderstanding the bugs Vanna was talking about that can be passed around between big boys and girls, there are going to have to be some explanations down the line!