One of the things I love most about home ownership is having a space for myself and all the things I love to collect — sanctum I can retreat to and put my feet up, throw on some music, and read for a bit.
Here’s what it looks like currently:
My first order of business tonight was to completely empty Miles’s room of toys, following a report that he hit a fellow student in the FACE today. As much as I’d like to be able to say my anger is primarily centered on the loss of my personal space, that’s obviously not true. I was as furious with Miles as I’ve ever been, and while I know he’s learning to make his own decisions, I naturally can’t help but immediately start running through the play-by-play of the last almost-five years searching for the point where we somehow suggested that behavior like this might be okay.
It’s a fool’s errand, of course. Miles’s experience goes beyond Jaclyn and I, and physical outbursts are some of the most instinctive and primal reactions humans have. The best we can do is make clear that it won’t be tolerated and just what the consequences for that behavior are.
Fortunately, by the end of the night Miles had written an apology note to the classmate in question. Sure, we insisted on it, but the attention to handwriting let me know he put his best effort into it. Onward and upward.
For now, I’m crossing my fingers hoping he earns all this crap back by the weekend.
The Perils (& Pride) of Paternity 