Today I fell and hurt myself pretty badly. Despite the severe pain I felt in my foot and knee, feelings of embarrassment overshadowed the pain that I was feeling in my leg that was now starting to turn black and blue. All I did was dust myself off and walk away as if nothing had happened. This is in stark contrast to what would have happened if I had hurt myself when I was a kid.
As a child I have hurt myself innumerable times. Split finger, twisted ankle, fractured foot, torn ligament, cut lip, scraped knee, elbow, chin, nose bleed - you name it, chances are pretty good that I would have injured myself that way; I still have the remnant bumps on my forehead to prove some of my past adventures.
When I hurt myself I would bawl my eyes and lungs out. Though the howling could pretty much be heard around town, it was directed to one person in particular - my Mom. It was so that she could know that I was in pain and needed her undivided attention from that point on. To be honest, I quite enjoyed being hurt and sick, because those were the times that I would be the center of attention of my family. Though not being an attention seeker in public, I must say I enjoyed being fawned over by my Mom, especially when I was hurt or unwell.
I don't think I am the only person guilty of this behavior as a child. Have you ever noticed that when a child falls or hurts itself it only cries when its Parent or loved one has witnessed its injury? The crying has got even louder when the Parent tries to soothe and comfort the child. There have been several occasions when the child has hurt itself the same exact way but just walked away without making a scene after looking around and observing that no one had noticed its 'boo-boo'. The greater the attention, the louder the crying gets. Of course, these are minor injuries that I am talking about and not something serious and life threatening.
Looking at my fading scars of an era gone by, I must say I am now quite fond of sharing the stories, behind each one of them, to ears that are willing to listen. I'm starting to think that kids enjoy the occasional scrape, here and there, while playing, though they will never ever admit to it.
As a child I have hurt myself innumerable times. Split finger, twisted ankle, fractured foot, torn ligament, cut lip, scraped knee, elbow, chin, nose bleed - you name it, chances are pretty good that I would have injured myself that way; I still have the remnant bumps on my forehead to prove some of my past adventures.
When I hurt myself I would bawl my eyes and lungs out. Though the howling could pretty much be heard around town, it was directed to one person in particular - my Mom. It was so that she could know that I was in pain and needed her undivided attention from that point on. To be honest, I quite enjoyed being hurt and sick, because those were the times that I would be the center of attention of my family. Though not being an attention seeker in public, I must say I enjoyed being fawned over by my Mom, especially when I was hurt or unwell.I don't think I am the only person guilty of this behavior as a child. Have you ever noticed that when a child falls or hurts itself it only cries when its Parent or loved one has witnessed its injury? The crying has got even louder when the Parent tries to soothe and comfort the child. There have been several occasions when the child has hurt itself the same exact way but just walked away without making a scene after looking around and observing that no one had noticed its 'boo-boo'. The greater the attention, the louder the crying gets. Of course, these are minor injuries that I am talking about and not something serious and life threatening.
Looking at my fading scars of an era gone by, I must say I am now quite fond of sharing the stories, behind each one of them, to ears that are willing to listen. I'm starting to think that kids enjoy the occasional scrape, here and there, while playing, though they will never ever admit to it.
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