Speaking of Memory...

[porphyry]

On Thursday night, Andrew went with his grandfather (my father), to see Grammy in the hospital. Andrew is currently confined to a wheelchair while his broken leg mends.

Later, Andrew kept telling me about how he had almost been in another wreck. I didn't think too much about it since I thought he was talking about the actual car wreck in which his leg was broken.

It turns out he was right. Apparently, as my father was pushing Andrew's little wheelchair towards the sidewalk ramp, a driver parked by the curb who was trying to pull into the street and didn't see my father or Andrew. The car lurched forward and nearly struck them, but the driver was able to slam on the brakes before we had another catastrophe to deal with.

"What did Papa say?" I asked Andrew.

He thought, trying to remember. Then he affected a deep, loud voice. "Damn it, God, why don't you look where you're going and clear out, you sunny!"

What Papa really said was (the loud voice was correct on Andrew's part): "Goddammit, why don't you look where you're going before you try to clear out, you son-of-a-bitch!"

Andrew has since perfected it.

Comments

[leopold-paula-b.livejournal.com]

Heartwarming story. Andrew isn't only sharp and clever, but also charming and lovable. (And generally spoken, I'm not the greatest fan of kids that age.)

[malkhos.livejournal.com]

Yes, he's learning to curse quite well. :) I didn't take my father to task too harshly--well, actually not at all--since my father has a lot on his mind these days.

Andrew is a charming little chap. The funny thing about him is that if he were to go into a room and there were a group of grownups on one side and a group of children his age on the other, Andrew would choose the group of grownups. He's much more comfortable in their company, chatting away. He gets along with and has made friends at his little preschool, but given the choice, he prefers adult conversation and therefore emulates it quite well.

[poldy.livejournal.com]

just the opposite of my two boys (5 & 6), who thoroughly dislike adult company

poor guy, trapped in his wheelchair. I can only imagine how difficult that would be for him

[malkhos.livejournal.com]

I think most four-year-olds aren't all that fond of adult company. Andrew is unusual that way. He's managing all right in his wheelchair, though, so far. We're being as creative as possible to have some activities for him to do though I've explained to him that he shouldn't waste this opportunity for quiet introspection. "What's that, Mama?" he asked. "Thinking about things," I said. "Having a conversation with yourself inside your head."

[poldy.livejournal.com]

I've known a few kids who prefer adult company. I wish mine were a bit more tolerant of it, so that, for example, I could talk to an adult for 10 minutes.

[benicek.livejournal.com]

Maybe it was a religious slur "why don't you look where you're going before you try to clear out, you Sunni!"

[malkhos.livejournal.com]

I thought about that too! I was going to ask my father if perhaps it were a Sunni and I was trying to remember if they wore any distinctive form of dress so I could ask him about it.

Speaking of religious slurs, once we had the kids I had to caution Malkhos to stop rolling down the car windows to shout "Mormon scum" at the poor young men sent out to proselytize.

[stefanie-bean.livejournal.com]

My husband's late father used to make rude remarks about "other" churches in front of my husband, when my husband was a little boy - until my husband started repeating them back, especially in front of old lady friends of theirs.

Glad to hear Andrew and grandfather avoided another wreck. I hate it when people speed through parking lots; I tend to walk VERY slowly in front of someone I think is going too fast.

[malkhos.livejournal.com]

I had to warn Malkhos early I wouldn't tolerate intolerance no matter how crazy he thinks the Mormons are. I personally could care less what faith people choose to follow; that's why we don't have any mandated religion and my children need to learn to respect that.

I'm glad they avoided the whole possibility of another accident, too--I couldn't imagine!

[stefanie-bean.livejournal.com]

Around here, at least, I've found the Mormons to be pretty nice. A couple of Mormon guys caught us one Saturday morning as we came home from grocery shopping. They offered to carry our groceries in (we declined.) I know they just wanted to get a foot in the door, but at least they were willing to do something other than simply talk.

About the most organized, religiously, we get around here is that my husband goes to Masonic meetings. I would actually like to go to church once in awhile, not because I am that devout a believer (I'm not sure I'm a believer at all anymore, at least not in any orthodox sense), but because the Roman Mass was the cultural linchpin of the West, so to speak, for centuries, and I like old things with long continuity. Or an Anglican church that really followed the 1662 Book of Common Prayer would be nice, too. I just want to participate in something that old. But everyone wants to make the Mass "relevant."

[malkhos.livejournal.com]

Mormons are terribly polite--so polite, I find it hard to be anything but polite in return. How do they do that? :)

Well, I can remember a time when the Mass was in Latin--and I can remember the switch to English--and ever since that time I've longed for a return to Latin. I like the long history; the tradition of religion too. The "relevancy" issue--you are quite right to me was part of the great loss I feel. It's hard to explain--religion isn't supposed to be about you; it's supposed to be bigger than you. Does that make any sense? Like the language change--I didn't understand Latin but I understood.

Benicek, quit laughing at me. :)

[stefanie-bean.livejournal.com]

LOL, they really work hard at it. I really can't criticize their theology, because when you come right down to it, many religious ideas sound strange to those "outside the fold." I tend to look at how people act towards others, and in general the Mormons I've met have been nice people.

I wasn't raised Catholic, but I converted (badly) some years ago, and then lapsed into antinomianism. When Catholic I did hear the Tridentine Latin Mass at St. Agatha's several times. I think St. Francis de Sales down on Gravois is where they have the Latin Mass now. Have you ever been?

Re understanding, I guess I lean more to the Orthoox way, because to my mind, the liturgy is something to be experienced with the whole body (sight, sound, smell, emotion) and the intellect second. Anyway, if it's true (not arguing that point, just raising it for the case in point), then you wouldn't really be able to understand it in any case - if you believe the dogmatic theologians, you'd *never* be able to understand it; it would always be beyond you, even when you were translated into heaven.

:blows kiss to Benicek from the "amen corner," LOL:

[benicek.livejournal.com]

Bloody hell, Malkhos sounds a bit of an ASBO kid. Haha.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-social_behaviour_order

[malkhos.livejournal.com]

On the contrary, the Mromons are the ones who want to destroy society.

[malkhos.livejournal.com]

I think you might be onto something; however, if you ask him, he says plaintively, as though he were stating the obvious: "Joseph Smith, L. Ron Hubbard, Paul--all confidence tricksters bent on controlling the world. Except maybe Paul. He actually believed what he said, probably."

"And that just makes him crazy, right?"

"Exactly."

"What about Jesus?"

"Jesus didn't have anything to do with all of this. He was just some hippie holy man wandering around the desert looking to create a peasant revolution for the Jews. There were many others just like him and too little is known about him to be able to say what he wanted but that's not what you see now, is it?"

"In South America. Liberation theology," I reply.

"Which the Catholic Church condemns as heresy every time it rears its head! John Paul II equated it with communism. I doubt what the Catholic Church has become is what Jesus would have wanted."

"You're trying to get me to jeopardize my soul on account of you," I say. "I won't do it."

I think, though, that what you call ASBO, we call "hate crime."

[malkhos.livejournal.com]

Oh, and by the way, he also claims his "Mormon scum" comments are protected by the Constitution.