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On the Same Team
There's Comfort in Coordinated Cuties By Shel Franco
Matching outfits are precious. I know some people would disagree, but I am a sucker for coordinated siblings. It's not just about looking cute. It's so much more than that a way for the outside world to see that my boys are members of the same darling team.
But lately, I wonder what teams they are on; it certainly doesn't seem like one and the same. My oldest likes to do puzzles. My youngest likes to walk over them, kicking the pieces as he goes. My oldest likes to build block towers. My youngest likes to knock them down. My oldest likes to recline on the sofa, looking at a picture book. My youngest likes to dive off the arm of the sofa, crashing to the floor with a giggle or shout. If their behaviors weren't so exasperating, their differences would be downright funny. But I find myself growing tired of always being the one to referee these little matters.
As they grow, it gets easier and easier to dwell on those moments of exasperation they seem to come every 15 minutes. But then there are the times when they shed the opposing jerseys and don colors of the same team like the other day when my oldest chased three youngsters off the playground equipment for being "nasty" to his little brother or the times I reprimand one only to receive cold stares and shoulders from the other.
It's in those moments that I am gently reminded that even team members have disagreements, and they certainly have different talents. What makes the team a winner is hardly 100 percent harmony. It's the knack for coming together when it matters most.
A recent roll of film revealed a photo of my boys, embracing wildly with huge smiles on their faces. I remember that five minutes after the photo was taken, they were swinging and kicking at each other over a toy. Still, that photo softens my heart, because the lens captured what I have always believed to be a simple truth of parenting: Matching argyle sweater vests are absolutely darling on little boys.