Things That Result in Violence In My House
I have not seen a game of chess played in my house that didn't erupt in violence, blood oaths, death threats, and the pieces of the chess set being flung across the room.
We've gone through 4 chess sets in a year.
I always resist buying the new set and try to just adjust the current set, because I'm all about saving things and ghetto style. First, you replace the crushed knight with a penny, and so on. But after awhile you have too many replacements for pieces and you can't remember what the dental floss was supposed to be or if the Barbie shoe was the King or the Queen and an argument ensues that ends, of course, in blood oaths and death threats and the remaining pieces being flung across the room.
During times like these, I think alot about where I went wrong and what I could possibly do to curb the 'passionate' bent of the women in this family. I've introduced them to Chi Gung and Yoga and meditation and prayer. But I've come to realize that at some point-it's just genetics. For instance, my mother is one of the most competitive people I know. She was the captain of her volleyball team and basketball team (and she's 5 feet tall. THAT'S how competitive she is). My sister was in competitive sports for years. And being the different person that I am, I tried to be as non-competitive as I could be. I didn't put my kids into these sorts of things, and I tried to always emphasize with them and myself that it isn't necessary to do these things.
But it still creeps in. When my fiance tells me " I love you," the inevitable response from me is , "I love you more." And the children can't even play chess without acting like it's a fight to the death. I think next time, I'll buy them the Candyland game. You can't go wrong with peppermint.
We've gone through 4 chess sets in a year.
I always resist buying the new set and try to just adjust the current set, because I'm all about saving things and ghetto style. First, you replace the crushed knight with a penny, and so on. But after awhile you have too many replacements for pieces and you can't remember what the dental floss was supposed to be or if the Barbie shoe was the King or the Queen and an argument ensues that ends, of course, in blood oaths and death threats and the remaining pieces being flung across the room.
During times like these, I think alot about where I went wrong and what I could possibly do to curb the 'passionate' bent of the women in this family. I've introduced them to Chi Gung and Yoga and meditation and prayer. But I've come to realize that at some point-it's just genetics. For instance, my mother is one of the most competitive people I know. She was the captain of her volleyball team and basketball team (and she's 5 feet tall. THAT'S how competitive she is). My sister was in competitive sports for years. And being the different person that I am, I tried to be as non-competitive as I could be. I didn't put my kids into these sorts of things, and I tried to always emphasize with them and myself that it isn't necessary to do these things.
But it still creeps in. When my fiance tells me " I love you," the inevitable response from me is , "I love you more." And the children can't even play chess without acting like it's a fight to the death. I think next time, I'll buy them the Candyland game. You can't go wrong with peppermint.
