Sunday, September 17, 2017

Imaginary Bows and Being Two

The other day Tessie's therapist was here and we were talking about her developmental milestones when an argument of sorts broke out on the other side of the room.  

It was loud.  There were tears.  

"I have a bow on my tail!  And you don't get a bow!  It's my bow!  I have a bow!  It's on my tail!"  Patch was skipping back and forth turning around and looking behind him now and then at the imagined bow and tail, and then at James who was about to collapse on the ground, sobbing. 


Since a night, earlier in the week, when we'd watched Aristocats for Family Fun Night,  James had been pretending to be Berlioz and Patch would answer to no name other than Toulouse.  There had been a lot of meowing.  

James would wake up out of a deep sleep and say "You're not Berlioz.  I'm Berlioz!" in the grumpiest of voices, although no one had contested that imaginary fact.  

James hurtled across the room and landed on my lap, tears streaming.  "Are you... crying because you don't have a... bow on your tail?  Patrick, stop so I can hear your brother!"  James nodded solemnly in answer to my question and Patrick's song about a bow on his tail trailed off.  

"Here."  I plucked an imaginary bow out of the air near Patrick.  "Here's a bow for your collar."  I pretended to tie it.  "Now you both have bows!"  And off they went, James giggling and jumping back across the room.


Being two can be dramatic.  

"And that is some pretty impressive imaginative play."  The therapist pointed out as I scooped up a wiggling Tessie and returned my attention to the conversation at hand.  

And it was.  Although with Maggie's mermaid escapades and Sadie's princess stories, there has never really been a shortage of imaginative play around here.  

But I think that may have been the first fight over and entirely pretend object that I've ever seen end in tears.  

2 comments:

  1. Pretty par for the course around here with my two little grandsons! There are frequent tears and lots of hollering over purely imaginary property.

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  2. LOL this made me smile. Thanks for sharing. I remember similar episodes with my sister when we were little - no *I'm* the littler kitten!

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