How do you explain to a four year old that she can’t love someone after just one meeting? 
Correct answer?
You don’t explain it. You just nod and smile when she professes her undying love to the only boy in her gymnastics class.
I told her after her first gymnastics class of this term–when she met the boy and started talking of love and such–that I wouldn’t go around telling him about her love.
“Why not?” She couldn’t understand why you wouldn’t tell someone you love them.
“Never mind,” I told her.
She’s just so sweet about it and why ruin it?
Monday she had her gymnastics class and we got there just a few minutes before class started. Her gym is on the other side of the city and since we’re never late, getting there 5-10 minutes before class starts has never been an issue. This time though, it was a big issue; Ollie and I ended up sitting on the floor. Normally the “observation room” is practically deserted but I suspect the sudden uptake in mother hens is due to this term’s class starting at 1515.
It was obvious a lot of the women knew each other and their kids have probably been in class together since they were Cara’s age so the noise level in the room bordered on overwhelming. I had brought my laptop with hopes of catching up on some writing but that was impossible.
By the time we left gymnastics, I was stressed and had every intention of changing Cara’s class time. I called Tucker and explained it all as I drove home and as soon as Cara heard me mention moving her to a different class, she freaked out.
“But I won’t be with Alex! I love Alex!”
I glanced at her in the rear-view mirror and rolled my eyes.
Even though sitting in the floor, surrounded by loud and annoying women, made me want to run away screaming and the idea of Cara being humiliated by unrequited four year old love scares the crap out of me, there’s no way I can move her out of that class when she’s so emphatic about staying in the class she’s in.
I guess this is just one of those things she’s going to have to learn on her own and it’s going to hurt like hell for both of us.
