Wednesday, July 2, 2008

The Captain Of The Ship

"MOM?!", I used to yell from every room in our house. "Where is my other shoe / my Depeche Mode tape / the toilet paper / my science book / my coat / all the pens?"

Sometimes, she pretended not to know the answer, (like in the case of the Depeche Mode tapes which she hid because she didn't like the words to a particular song). Sometimes, she would reply, "I don't know. Where did you put it?" My answer was always, "I dunno", so I'm not sure why she bothered asking.

The majority of the time, though, she knew the exact location of what I was looking for. "It's by the sliding glass door / it's under the sink, in the cabinet / it's on the dining room table / it's on the green chair in the living room". She always seemed to know!

How did she know? I never really wondered how my mom kept track of all my belongings, along with her own, and my dad's. That's just the way it was, and the way I felt that it should be.

There were a few other things I just felt she should know. "MOM?! When is my piano lesson / the birthday party / the recital / Dad going to be home?" She almost always knew those answers, too.

I don't recall my mom having a daily planner tucked into her purse, and Blackberry's weren't even invented, so how did she keep track of it all? It's simple...well, actually it's not simple...it's just a fact. She is a Mom. She was the daily planner, the clock, the activities director, the finder of all lost things. She was the captain of the ship. You see, without a Mom, the crew is lost at sea.

Lately, I find myself answering a lot of questions from my husband. "JEN?! Where is that receipt / my shoes / my keys / my cellphone / that phone number?" Then there's, "JEN?! What time is the cookout / the movie / the game / Dylan's appointment?"

Lucky for me, Dylan isn't talking much yet. For now his questions seem to be limited to, "Shoes?", "Unn?", "Meow?", "Dada?", and "Bubba?", or "Can we put my shoes on and go outside or somewhere in the car?", "Where's the cat?", "When is Daddy or Grandpa coming?"

But, I know the day is coming when I'll scream down the stairs, "I don't know, Dylan. Where did you put it?", to which I know that he will answer, "I dunno". I'm also pretty sure that I will then tell him the exact location of whatever he is looking for. Why? Because I am the Mom, and I am the captain of the ship. Ahoy, mates, it's smooth sailing from here on out.

9 comments:

Kellan said...

YES - We are the finder of all lost things - it is EXHAUSTING!!

Have a good Thursday- see you soon - Kellan

JCK said...

I think there must be some organic change that happens within us when we become moms...causing us to have a finely tuned nose for lost things.

Lijy said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Lijy said...

hi...

Dropped here after a long time, And was happy to read about Dylan and how fast he is growing up.

Congrats on your new house ..

After reading this post, I realised that its the same everywhere. I mean, I was dependent on my Mom for every thing. And now its hubby who is always asking where his stuff is or what time he has to reach somewhere.And I know it wont be long when Jason will be asking where his books/toys etc are.

It is exhausting :)

Gina said...

My mom was much nicer about her answers than I am. I generally answer the husband with, "If it were in your ass, you'd know!" I'm classy like that.

Burgh Baby said...

Depeche Mode? I knew I loved you!

Kellan said...

Hey Jen - have a good day - Kellan

The Girls' Mommy said...

Yesterday Ronnie asked me where the spare soap was. I answered, "Under the bathroom sink on your side" And he says, "We have sides???"

Janet said...

Neither my husband nor my 4-year-old daughter can find anything, even when it's right in front of them. My 2-year-old son can find anything. He ALWAYS knows where the juice glasses are. My general response has become, "I'm not the one who put it down. Go look for it." Of course, the method of "looking" is standing in the middle of the room and gazing vaguely around waiting for the object to leap into their arms. The Mountain man does this too. He's especially bad about opening the refrigerator and trying to find things WITHOUT MOVIGN ANYTHING! Argh.