From a Daredevil Boy to a Caring Hero: The Story of Gabriel and Tiny.
My firstborn was a very active boy. During our stay in Baba Hassan's house, he loved exploring grasshoppers. Sometimes, he and his friends would build houses out of clay for these grasshoppers.
One day, he saw a grasshopper that looked like a stick. He showed it to me, and I wondered what it was until I came across an article about it online. I learnt that it was a form of camouflage that helped the insect avoid predators.
He once showed me a variegated grasshopper with yellow and black stripes. 🤔 Hmm! I began to wonder what kind of boy I had. One day, he climbed a tree and broke his arm. He cried and cried. However, after the fracture had healed, my son still went back to climbing trees behind my back.
However, what I knew he was afraid of was the dark. One day, he was in the room with me, shivering and telling me to look at the angels by the doorpost. He said they were dressed in black and looked really scary. I did not even know what to say, so I simply hugged the boy.
He also fantasised about Spider-Man after watching the film. I wondered why he was so fascinated by the character. One day, trying to mimic spider man, he fell after jumping off a cliff, leaving a scar on his face. Hmm! It wasn't small injury. In fact his dad quaried me for being careless mother.
Gabriel!!!
As if that was not enough, he once decided that he was a very athletic person. He believed he was Flash. He even insulted a teenager who was older than him, boasting that he was Flash and that no one could catch him.
The teenager pursued him until he fell and injured himself.
I cannot begin to count the number of injuries Samson, my firstborn, inflicted on himself.
One day, we got a baby puppy for him. He loved the puppy so much that he tried to keep it warm by wrapping it in clothes. This was because he had learnt that temperatures dropped at night. He believed that puppies would normally cling to their mothers for warmth, but this little one had no mother.
He became so occupied with caring for the little puppy that he stopped causing trouble. He began to learn about pain, love and care. Hot-water bottles became a substitute for the warmth of a mother.
He hardly slept, as he was always asking about his pet dog and checking whether it had been brought to him.
Then Halloween came, and Gabriel forgot about his pet dog for a while. He was so curious about the costume I had bought for him.
“Spider-Man! Spider-Man!” he sang excitedly.
Trust me, I did not forget to buy a costume for his pet dog, either.
Gabriel froze.
“You bought one for Tiny?” he asked.
I was amazed. “Oh! So, you have named him Tiny?”
Wow! He dressed Tiny in the new costume, and the two of them set off for the Halloween party. I could only watch as the once-careless Gabriel changed, all because of his pet dog.
His friend Derek decided to scare him. Dressed in a ghost costume, Derek ran after Gabriel, trying to frighten him. However, Gabriel was not fooled by his trick. He recognised Derek's voice.
“Derek! My Tiny Spidey, to the rescue!” he screamed.
In superhero mode, Gabriel was ready to fight.
The once-frightening Derek ran towards the Mickey Mouse house to hide.
Gabriel saw through his trick and went around to the opposite side of the house, catching Derek off guard.
As Gabriel tapped Derek, who was dressed as a ghost, he burst out laughing. The ghost had become the frightened one!
That day, Gabriel thoroughly enjoyed himself at the Halloween party. We took a couple of pictures with scary faces.
As we returned home that night, I watched Gabriel cuddle Tiny, exhausted from their Halloween adventure. I could not help but smile. The boy who once climbed trees recklessly, challenged older children and injured himself in the name of being a superhero had found something that taught him responsibility. Perhaps Tiny was the real superhero after all, saving Gabriel from his own mischief.
That night, I realised that sometimes, children do not need endless warnings or punishments to learn important lessons. Sometimes, all they need is a little companion to love, protect and care for. And for Gabriel, that companion was Tiny.
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