I’m not even sure where to begin on this one. Perhaps setting up the scene is the right place to start.
This past weekend I took the 4-year old Terror Twins to the park. It was a beautiful Sunday and spending a couple of hours outdoors sure seemed preferable to staying inside and pushing myself towards a nervous breakdown watching “Caillou” on the Sprout Channel. So there we were, on the slides and on the swings, playing in the sand, and having fun.
When soon a pair of young women and a young guy show up with what was probably a 5-year old girl in tow pushing her dolls in a pretty pink stroller. The women were maybe 20 years old and very attractive; the guy looked to be just about the same age though his sagging pants and very straight-billed, and slightly crooked, hat distracted my judgment. I immediately assessed them as a single mother, her friend, and a guy who’s tolerating the whole situation in order to get some good sex.
This impression was further cemented when the guy sat down, pulled out four cans of Miller Lite (no doubt the Punch Top cans), and cracked open two. He and one of the women then began some light petting and kissing – not quite foreplay, but then again they were only on their first beer.
After about 20 minutes of playing with the apparent third-wheel of the group, the little girl called out to be pushed on the swing. The guy immediately stood up from the bench and began walking over when the girl said “No! Not daddy! He pushes too high. I want mommy!” Causing the woman to stand up and walk over.
Mommy? Daddy?
So. Now we’ve got a young mother and father, drinking beer in the park, on a Sunday afternoon and making out in front of their 5-year old daughter, my 4-year old twin boys, a friend of theirs and myself.
If you’re next question is “Were they married?”, I don’t know, but does it really matter?
To be honest, I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about this situation; perhaps too much. And although the little girl seemed happy, well adjusted, and played well with Twin #2, I can’t help but wonder what life has in store for her. I hope her parents stay together and live happily ever after. I hope there’s a good support system in place. I hope they both start growing up much more quickly than it appears they have.
And I hope the beer and hormones on public display Sunday didn’t lead to another child. I’m sorry, but I just can’t help but think they’re not ready for Kid 2.0.
Finally, how many of you got the DJ Jazzy Jeff And The Fresh Prince reference in the title? C’mon, now. Be honest.
Yeah, there’s a time and place for everything! What can you say in this situation? You don’t want to freak your sons out. It would just be awkward for as long as it lasted. They do sound like a bunch of kids.
I took my soon-to-be step-son to the park yesterday after dinner and saw pretty much the same thing, minus the beer. A young man and woman sitting at the picnic table under the gazebo sucking face. And I may have missed it, but I don’t think they were even there with a child. Just good ol’ fashioned exibitionism.
I’m kinda egotistical (and apparently lonely) so I decided to LIKE this post myself… I also gave it a +1 on Google Plus. Sigh…