me: “Good-bye honey. Can I get another big birthday-hug before I have to leave?”
d: “sure”
(Insert big hug here… the kind every mom loves to get from her kid…)
me: “thank you honey. I love you.”
d: “I love you more, Mom.”
I smiled. I love this game… and we hadn’t played it in a while…
When he was little, we played it all the time… in various forms. There was the “I love you ___ than ______” version, which would start off with the usual clichés, like, “I love you higher than the highest mountain“, and then would quickly turn to silly random things… like, “I love you bouncier than the bounciest bouncy ball!”. This could go on… and on… and on… usually, delaying bed time in the process…
Yeah, those were good times. But, those times just aren’t as frequent now that “d” is a whopping 9 years old going on 15. He has his big brother to keep up with, after all. So, I welcomed this chance to debate an old favorite topic with him. It was an argument that I had never lost in the past, to him or his brother. Partly, because not giving in is the fun of it… but mostly, because I truly believe that there’s just no way anyone can love anyone more than I love my boys…
So, I said the expected, “I don’t think so. You know I love you more. But, thank you anyway.”
d: “I do too, Mom. I love you more.”
me: “Not possible. I love you soooo much, it’s just not possible for you to love me more. But, I’m glad you think you do.”
d: “I do.”
me: “no way.”
This may have repeated 2-3 more times… before d says to me… very matter-of-factually,
“I do so love you more. Mom, I’m doing it right now.“
Huh! You can’t really argue with that kind of logic, now, can you? Well, maybe you can… but, I didn’t want to. Besides, he was right. I could feel the love that he was so adamantly giving wholeheartedly “right now“. He meant it. So, I decided to just soak it in and, admit loving defeat… for once. For the first time, really. But, what a way to go, huh?
So, I said, “ok…. If you say so.”
(Smug smile from d….)
(Loving smile from me…)
(Exit stage left…)
=)
Sheryl Crow – Sweet Child O’ Mine
