Mama Byrd

This morning Phillip and Elli had their first fight– over the remote control.

Like most babies, Phillip is enamored with the remote control. And why wouldn’t he be? It’s bright and shiny and it has lots of buttons. His daddy’s eyes still glaze over when he sees the remote control.

Phillip and Elli were in the living room playing together this morning when Phillip suddenly started screaming in protest. He was banging on the floor and frowning at me when I entered the room, and Elli was holding the remote control to her chest like a mother hen protecting her chick from a hungry coyote.

When I asked what happened, Elli whimpered, “Phillip was trying to change the channel.” I looked at the t.v. and saw that the dish network satellite information was loading. Meanwhile, Phillip was still beating his hands on the floor, wondering why his sister took his toy away.

But, really, isn’t the remote control all about power? Whoever has the remote control is really in charge. Isn’t that why men insist on being the keeper of the remote control in their own homes? If they have the remote control, that means they have control over something (even if it’s just the t.v.).

So begins the classic power struggle between brother and sister. Both of them want to be in charge. For now, it’s just about what to watch on t.v. Someday I’m sure they’ll be fighting over who gets to drive the car. And maybe one day, the fight will be over dad’s estate or who gets to take care of mom when she’s old and decrepid. Maybe we’ll try to stave off those fights for as long as possible.

Filed under: Uncategorized on April 15th, 2006