The tormentors and the tormented

by tess

It has recently been brought to my attention that some people find my blogs less than child-friendly. I have a word for you: Harrumph. Proving yet again how open-minded I am, I will hypothesize that when children are locked along with their wardens in their homes away from my ears and eyes, they may be (all evidence to the contrary notwithstanding) relatively smell-free, vaguely cogent human beings rather than vampiric hellspawn.

In South Florida we have zero lot lines and are stuffed into our communities like proverbial tinned sardines. Therefore, we share front, side, and rear yard lot lines with a number of homes, some of which include children. Apparently weekend mornings from nine until noon have been universally declared Special Mommy Daddy Time while the children are vigorously thrust and effectively locked outside. Seconds become hours and hours become centuries as the ceaseless, soul-sucking shrieks continue unchecked. Alas, a bone-weary adult voice ends my torment. The cacophony shifts to another zone. Tranquility is restored and my lungs expand with the serenity so long denied me.

The only time I actually see the caterwauling banshees is during my commute home. From 4:00 to 7:00 PM, approximately eight thousand unsupervised four- to six-year olds effectively close down the single route that filters traffic from the main thoroughfare into our community. The Lord of the Flies-wannabes refuse to move to the side of the narrow road. They continue their games and conversations while glaring at the cars, daring interference in their significant, self-entitled child-functions. All traffic grinds to a halt until one fool-hardy soul breaches the child-fortress. Rat-like, the rest of us follow, flowing through the all-but-impregnable child wall, praying for deliverance to our driveways unscathed by the children of the night.

Might there be a flicker of sentient human residing behind their simian eyes? Certainly.
Do their violent actions toward one another and the adults around them mirror their perception of their own treatment? Possibly.
Will the mean-spirited aggression learned in our streets instruct the men and women responsible for leading our country in the future? Definitely.

Terrifying.