(idea) by junkpile Tue Feb 27 2001 at 7:29:17

Shaymus and I watch a lot of tv together but we do not ever watch the news. Still, when we are playing What Movie Will We Make, the first one always makes me worry.

Here's what, he says. He wants to make a movie that's about kids doing ordinary stuff. Playing in the park and watching tv and walking down the street. It's the walking down the street kids that really interest him. All the kids are in imminent danger, there might be a bad guy or there might be lightning or a monster coming. The kids on the street are in the most trouble; they have potential monsters and robbers and natural disasters and cars that might jump up on the sidewalk and smash em. He lists the possibilities solemnly, as if he know they might all happen today, to anybody. All of it could happen to him.

Has he been creeping downstairs at night to watch CNN to learn the terrible things?   What do you know, Shaymus, what have you hidden? Have you grown up already and not told us?

The saving grace, I guess, is that none of the disasters ever quite come true. The kids run out in traffic or go under water too long or step on sharp things - but it is ok, they never even know they are in trouble, everything is fine. But we know, watching them, talking about it. We know it was a close one that time, and we are glad to see them run off yelling to the other kids. They will get called home for dinner and have something good for dessert.

This movie, always fundamentally the same, has different names for different themes. They Don't Get Caught On Fire.   The Cars Don't Squash Them This Time.   Nobody Gets Eated Up By The Vampire.   (I hesitate to correct his idea of what vampires do; I wouldn't like to see myself explaining that to a five-year-old - happy nightmares, kid.   Oh. They suck out my blood. I see. Thanks.)

I like to tell myself, it is only a statement about how safe he feels. That he senses we will keep the bad things from happening in his life. This fallacy breeds a dozen other worries (he is unprepared - but we cannot prepare him for everything - and always the ouch of   he is still so young and unbroken.)

I am happier when we go to the next movie, I'm The Farmer. The camera will show us a farmer waking up real early when the rooster goes off. We will be him today. We will yawn and scratch and have flapjacks. We will go out to the barn and smell the earth and hay in the dark. We will rev up the tractor and be halfway down the field by the time the sun peeks up. The day is full of seeds and pigs and lemonade brought to us on a tray by the nice farm lady in the blue dress.   It is a good day, there is no danger in it. Shaymus is asleep by now, but I will let the story go on a little bit further, for me. Watching him sleep. He has not gotten hurt yet, today.
I like it! 7 C!s

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