"Dad, I'm just a Forgetter."
My phone rang and it was my wife.
"Hey, babe. What's up?"
"We got pizza and are on our way home, but Caleb needs a spanking. Can you do that when we get home?"
"Sure." (Another day in the life.)
Caleb is a live wire. He really wants to do the right thing and obey, but right after you tell him what to do he says, "Okay", but then doesn't "Obey". It's like it goes in one ear and out the other. I've told him that I don't care if he says "Okay" if he doesn't "Obey". (That's another blog for another day...I think adults are no different in many respects, so this isn't a indictment on my 6 year old alone.)
When they got home, Heidi filled me in on what happened. She was at church and told him to stay next to her and over and over again he would stay for a second and then wander off where the other kids were playing. She told him that if he didn't stay next to her that he would get a spanking when he got home. He acknowledged what she said and then promptly did the exact opposite as is his custom. It's like he has the attention span of a spider monkey.
When he came through the door I told him to get the spanking spoon from the kitchen drawer and head up to Kami's bedroom. I told him I'd be up in a bit. (That could mean I'll be there anywhere between 1 and 10 minutes depending on how long I want him to sit and linger in the anticipation of discipline. He hates that. Sometimes I think it's more painful than the swat on the behind.)
I eventually when upstairs and joined him on the side of the bed.
"So mom told me what happened and this seems to happen all the time. Can you tell me what happened?" (I love hearing him articulate his side of the story. Most of the time he knows exactly what he is being punished for. It's important to establish that, by the by, if you're a parent.)
"I didn't listen and ran away from mom when she said not to." He replied.
"Exactly. And this seems to happen all the time. At church, at school, and at home. You will be told to do something or not do something and--bam--you end up forgetting in a second and doing the opposite of what you're told to do. I don't get it."
He started to tear up.
"Well, dad, I can't help it. I'm just a Forgetter."
I thought I heard him right, but I had to ask him to repeat what he said.
"What did you say?"
"I'm a Forgetter."
I thought that's what I heard. I had to ask him,
"Where did you hear that word?"
"I don't know, I just am."
It's one of those times when you want to leave the room for a second to roll on the floor laughing, but I choked back the laugher and spoke into his heart.
"You might be a Forgetter, but that's why I'm going to give you a spanking. I want to turn you into a Rememberer."
"Dad, I don't think I can be a Rememberer. I've tried. I'm always a Forgetter." He was crying as he bemoaned this disease of forgetfulness that beset him so.
"I believe God can change you from a forgetter to a rememberer, because he lives inside of you and will help you to change. But this spanking spoon is part of what will help you become a rememberer as well. So why don't you get over my knee."
He cried a bit. I told him I loved him and that I wanted him to learn to obey because that is where joy and peace and freedom are found. I don't think he gets that part, but I try to translate it into words that he can understand as best I can.
After I applied some love taps to his hind quarters, I put him on my lap and we hugged. What's amazing with Caleb is that discipline just softens him right up. He is the most sensitive and loving right after he is corrected. So we sat and talked for a bit and he went downstairs and apologized to his mom.
"Dad, I'm just a Forgetter."
I'll never forget that. Aren't we all.
"Hey, babe. What's up?"
"We got pizza and are on our way home, but Caleb needs a spanking. Can you do that when we get home?"
"Sure." (Another day in the life.)
Caleb is a live wire. He really wants to do the right thing and obey, but right after you tell him what to do he says, "Okay", but then doesn't "Obey". It's like it goes in one ear and out the other. I've told him that I don't care if he says "Okay" if he doesn't "Obey". (That's another blog for another day...I think adults are no different in many respects, so this isn't a indictment on my 6 year old alone.)
When they got home, Heidi filled me in on what happened. She was at church and told him to stay next to her and over and over again he would stay for a second and then wander off where the other kids were playing. She told him that if he didn't stay next to her that he would get a spanking when he got home. He acknowledged what she said and then promptly did the exact opposite as is his custom. It's like he has the attention span of a spider monkey.
When he came through the door I told him to get the spanking spoon from the kitchen drawer and head up to Kami's bedroom. I told him I'd be up in a bit. (That could mean I'll be there anywhere between 1 and 10 minutes depending on how long I want him to sit and linger in the anticipation of discipline. He hates that. Sometimes I think it's more painful than the swat on the behind.)
I eventually when upstairs and joined him on the side of the bed.
"So mom told me what happened and this seems to happen all the time. Can you tell me what happened?" (I love hearing him articulate his side of the story. Most of the time he knows exactly what he is being punished for. It's important to establish that, by the by, if you're a parent.)
"I didn't listen and ran away from mom when she said not to." He replied.
"Exactly. And this seems to happen all the time. At church, at school, and at home. You will be told to do something or not do something and--bam--you end up forgetting in a second and doing the opposite of what you're told to do. I don't get it."
He started to tear up.
"Well, dad, I can't help it. I'm just a Forgetter."
I thought I heard him right, but I had to ask him to repeat what he said.
"What did you say?"
"I'm a Forgetter."
I thought that's what I heard. I had to ask him,
"Where did you hear that word?"
"I don't know, I just am."
It's one of those times when you want to leave the room for a second to roll on the floor laughing, but I choked back the laugher and spoke into his heart.
"You might be a Forgetter, but that's why I'm going to give you a spanking. I want to turn you into a Rememberer."
"Dad, I don't think I can be a Rememberer. I've tried. I'm always a Forgetter." He was crying as he bemoaned this disease of forgetfulness that beset him so.
"I believe God can change you from a forgetter to a rememberer, because he lives inside of you and will help you to change. But this spanking spoon is part of what will help you become a rememberer as well. So why don't you get over my knee."
He cried a bit. I told him I loved him and that I wanted him to learn to obey because that is where joy and peace and freedom are found. I don't think he gets that part, but I try to translate it into words that he can understand as best I can.
After I applied some love taps to his hind quarters, I put him on my lap and we hugged. What's amazing with Caleb is that discipline just softens him right up. He is the most sensitive and loving right after he is corrected. So we sat and talked for a bit and he went downstairs and apologized to his mom.
"Dad, I'm just a Forgetter."
I'll never forget that. Aren't we all.
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