i heard myself shouting at my kid today. seven. i took her bike out of storage for the first ride of the season. this after i spent most of last summer showing her how to ride her disney princess special edition. by the time school started up last september she had all but mastered the craft. or so i had thought. today she seemed so unsure of herself. she could barely push off without toppling over. and once she found her balance she proceeded to tip over three more times. she almost hit a parked car. she slammed into the curb on another occasion before spilling onto the neighbour's lawn. and so i lost my temper. i said some pretty terrible things. and as those words spilled out of my mouth i couldn't help but remember. i was reminded that those same words once left my old man's mouth with alarming frequency. that was one of the reasons i left the family home at 17. and one of the reasons i've barely spoken to the old man since. and yet today, the cycle was complete. it seems like the more we try to distance ourselves from our parents, the more we become just like them.
there's one sad truth in life i've found
while journeying east and west
the only folks we really wound
are those we love the best
we flatter those we scarcely know
we please the fleeting guest
and deal full many a thoughtless blow
to those who love us best
- ella wheeler wilcox
it must be the phenylethylamine that's making me feel this way:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7I5sixwOQlg&feature=related
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