Blogcoven

My boss has commented proudly that we are a very productive group. Every year turns up at least one wedding and at least one birth, sometimes several of each. This is the natural consequence of having a large and mostly unsupervised group. (I’ll lead you to draw your own conclusions as to why one leads to the other.) Children around here are a fact of life, not only in my group but around campus. I have no specific problem with this. It helps that most of the kids around are shockingly well-behaved.

The individual who works across the alcove from me is married and has at least one child. I’ve seen the wife around a couple times. It wasn’t until today that I saw the child…and it wasn’t until today that I’ve developed a problem with the high population of small children around here.

She wasn’t misbehaving. She wasn’t screaming in that obnoxious “Give it to me now” way I hear so often in public places. She was simply being happy and loud. It is a normal, and even good thing for a child to be.

This did not stop me from becoming irritated.

I will tolerate children being children in the appropriate context. If I go to a playground, I deserve whatever sonic punishment I get. I cannot complain when I am in a child’s house. My office is not the appropriate context for children, however, and I reserve the right to become miffed when a child is shouting through the very thin doors that serve as the only barrier between itself and myself. Children are more than welcome if they can behave like grownups. If this is too much to ask, they should not be here.

Luckily for everyone concerned, the wife and the child left after only ten minutes of shouting. I’m not sure what would have happened if it had continued. I think it’s best not to speculate.