The Playground Bully

Describe the last time you were surprised by the intensity of a feeling you had about something.

My son and I had been invited to a birthday party. There were a few games inside the hall and then the children could go out in the grounds to play. The older children started playing cricket and my son headed for the playground.

He had spotted a “spout” as he called it from the “Incy Wincy Spider” nursery rhyme, one of those tube slides that you find in a lot of playgrounds. He happily went towards it. There was a cute little girl my son’s age playing nearby while her nanny watched her.

“Hello!” said my son to the little girl smiling sweetly.

“Oh, you’re just a baby!” replied the girl losing all her cuteness.

“I’m not a baby!” said my son and started crying.

Then it was that moment when in cartoons one of the characters turns into a lion snarling at the inhumane human while protecting the little cub. I was that lion and I just wanted to smack that girl for making my little darling cry. It really hurt to see those big tears rolling down his cheeks. Somehow I felt even worse than when he falls down and hurts himself. This was different. Another child had hurt his feelings deliberately and without any reason.

“He’s not a baby!” I said glaring at the girl and her nanny who was least interested in the conversation.

I tried to console my son but he was inconsolable. He tells me several times in the day that he’s my cutest baby in the world but when the little girl called him a baby it was the biggest insult for him. I diverted his attention to the slide and after five long minutes he stopped crying. He didn’t attempt to talk to the girl again.

To this day when we go that playground I’m reminded of this incident and am apprehensive about my son playing there but apparently he has forgotten and doesn’t mind playing there.

Daily Prompt: Intense