Previous Challenge Entry (Level 3 - Advanced)
Topic: HONEST (05/31/18)
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TITLE: Zoo Time | Previous Challenge Entry
By Sarah Fehr
06/04/18 -
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ADD TO MY FAVORITES
Maybe every young couple dreams of the Norman Rockwell-like vacation scene: singing songs, playing the license plate game, and familial bonding in very tight spaces.
Here’s my reality (and this was just a day trip):
I get up early, feed the kids and inform them in peppy tones that we are headed to the zoo today. My son starts to cry declares, “But I don’t want to go to the zoo, it’s too boring! I want to stay home and play computer!”
My little girl responds in kind, crying when I ask her to get dressed because she really, really, really wants to wear her pajamas to the zoo.
Since it was my husband’s idea,I inform him that two out of two kids are balking at the idea. He still wants to go.
We load up in the car for the half hour drive. One is whining because we are taking the Volt, which she is convinced makes her carsick. (It doesn’t, because believe me if it did I would refuse to travel with her in it!) The other is antagonizing his sister at every opportunity.
We arrive at the zoo to the kids’ musical enunciations of “It’s too hot!” which span at least two octaves of whininess.
We become soaked in sweat just walking through the parking lot to get to the main attractions. The first half hour is punctuated by pleas to go ride the carousel. Half-hearted glances are thrown toward the grizzly bear habitat, the large cat pens, and the zebras. The giraffes arouse a bit more excitement because of their sheer height, but very soon the carousel chorus starts up again.
My husband is fuming, but agrees that we won’t get a moment of peace until we go to the carousel.
The kids’ faces beam as they mount their steeds and begin to gently rise and fall in time to the music. Golden moment. Then when it’s over, they complain that it was too short, and why we can’t ride it again? Golden moment busted.
Soon the complaining turns to food, so we find a shady spot to break out the snacks. However, the tantalizing smell of popcorn trumps my humble fish crackers. Cue more whining. Are we having fun yet?
We drag the kids past a face-painting booth, a 4-D theater, and more food. Since when did zoos becomes so filled with non-animal attractions?
We board the train for a breather. This is the second-favorite zoo attraction. When we detrain, my son doesn’t look so good. Motion sickness. At long last I buy the coveted carton of popcorn, only to throw away the popcorn itself and rush the receptacle to my son, who turns is into a vomit bucket.
We finally decide to call it quits and limp back home. At least everyone is too sick to fight or too tired to fight.
And this was just a day trip.
So why do we put ourselves through family vacations with young children when in all honesty it’s more stressful than being at home? My sister and I decided it’s like mining for gold. Lots of hard, thankless work, with small precious moments shining here and there.
I hope someday my children will have fond memories of visiting the zoo, even if it was for the sole reason of riding the carousel and the train. And if they can recount a few good memories along with all the bad ones when they find themselves sitting in therapy someday, maybe, just maybe, I’ve done my job.
“And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.” Gal. 6:9 (KJV)
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Cheers - great read!