Last weekend, I was gardening.
I was transferring one pot of aloe vera to a bigger pot when
I unearthed a GIANT worm. It squirmed from the exposure and snarled at me
menacingly. Ok, I might have imagined the snarling but I jumped back and
hollered for Dear Hubby.
My shining knight came running and scooped the worm into a
plastic bag. I made sure he made sure the worm was dead before he disposed of
it. He laughed at me being scared of a tiny worm. But I cannot help it. The
very sight of a wriggling worm gives me the creeps.
Yesterday, DH told me that there was a cockroach in the
bathroom. I rolled up a copy of Economist and swiftly killed the roach, before
picking it up (with a tissue la) and flushing it away. DH laughed (albeit
shakily, clearly still traumatized by the roach) that I can ‘terminate’ most
bugs in the house but am scared of worms.
He’s right and we are lucky to complement each other this
way. The bugs that freak him out (most except lizards and worms) – I can handle
them relatively calmly. He can take care of the yucky lizards and worms.
We all have our own preference and fears. It’s only human. Having said that, many of our fears are possibly a result of exposure and upbringing,
rather than innate.
Once we were in the fish section of a supermarket, where
they have live fishes in tanks. This was when we were living in HK. One fish
jumped a little, causing a little splash and startled a 4-5 year old girl next
to it. She screamed in fright so loudly and couldn’t stop crying for a long
while. DH couldn’t believe a fish can cause such a big reaction. To me, it
was probably a result of parental influence and lack of exposure.
One of my challenges is raising Dear Daughter to have an
open mind.
This is one of the many things about my parenting approach
which surprise even me. Friends know me as an opinionated person who has a
strong view on most matters and what I want. Often I persuade people to do
certain things (without realizing it).
Kids' hearts are pure. Their hearts are like a clean canvas. I consciously refrain from imposing my personal preference on her or introducing fears to her unwittingly. She shall develop her own preference, her own thoughts without prejudice.
Anyway last night, there was a bug crawling on the floor. I
pointed it out to DD and wanted to see how she would react. She was curious and leaned closer to touch the bug, then
squealed in excitement when the bug flew away. DH remarked she was a stark
contrast to an encounter when we were living in HK. I felt strangely proud of
my fearless little girl.
p.s. I used to be scared of cockroaches too. One Chinese New
Year eve, I saw one and screamed a bloodcurdling scream. My dad rushed to me
immediately and in his haste, he kicked at the roach and hit a metal object.
His big toe nail came off and he bled a lot. We even had to visit the A&E.
I felt really bad and thereafter suppressed the fear to rid the pests myself.
After awhile, I realized most bugs aren’t really that scary.
p.p.s Reading the entry again, it sounds like our house is
full of pests! It’s generally ok, just the norm for a tropical country.
