(Sorry, mom. But considering all the jokes about therapists helping you realize that most things can be blamed on your mother, if "rendering me unable to cope normally with being sick" is the worst I can pin on you, that's not so bad, right?)
When I was growing up, most of my friends' mothers pampered them when they were sick, keeping them home from school, letting them watch movies and cartoons to their heart's delight, bringing them hot soup and cooling drinks.
Not so at my house.First of all, for most of my childhood years, we didn't "go-to-school," per se, so sick days meant no change of scenery. (This is also why "snow days" held no joy for me; they meant I was simply stuck. at. school.) Second of all, illness is something for which my mother has very little patience. This was the typical response when one of us fell ill:
Day one: (with loving, uber-maternal sympathy) "My baby's sick? Oh, honey. Stay in bed, sleep in, get better, I'll make you some soup. By the way, you can still only watch PBS."
Day two (or sometimes just later in the day on day one): "You're still sick?" (Pulls the blanket off whimpering child) "Get over it, we're volunteering at the library today, go get your little brothers ready and don't you dare sneeze on them."
My mother's basic philosophy was that you shouldn't coddle a sick child, because to encourage such behavior might reinforce that behavior, and make them want to do it more often. If you think about it for a few minutes, it almost starts to make sense...
...and it is most certainly why I suck at being sick to this day. I mean, all of us are pretty cranky about being sick, right? But my stubborn refusal to be sick, and my borderline insane expectation that all illnesses should last 24 hours or less, is not exactly normal. This is my solo sick routine these days:
Days one-three (or longer): "I'm not sick."
Day four: "Body... shutting... down... can't... get out of... bed..."
Day five: "I HATE MY (SNEEZE, COUGH) BODY WHAT DO (COUGH) YOU MEAN I (SNEEZE) HAVE A FEVER (COUGH) I AM NOT (SNEEZE) STILL (COUGH, SNEEZE) SICK!!"
How am I feeling now? Better, thanks. :)
(Cough... sneeze...)
....
4 comments:
Incidentally, I wrote this post today, Thursday, April 3, but for some reason it got labeled April 1. I had a placeholder for March 31, so that would've made sense, or posting to today's date would've made sense, but ... April 1?
Must be some sort of April Fool's Day odd-is-in-the-air remnant.
oh, my dear one.
I am sorry that I suck at Florence-Nightengale-ness.
On the other hand, I honestly you get sick much less often than the norm...
and if it is any consolation, I am really bad at being sick myself.
Feel better. Sending uber-maternal wishes...
PS GET OVER IT!
;-)
been there, my friend! the first 24 hours was always nice and restful, but any time after was:
"here's your breakfast in bed, plus your math book, and here... have a bucket just in case"
SEE! I'm not the only one!
(thanks, bk2!)
(only for us, it was usually a bowl or a waste basket... no indoor buckets)
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