The Ghost of Injuries Past

I don't often babysit.

It's even harder now that I've gone to the Kushi Institute.  After four months in peaceful vegan solitude at the Institute, I was trapped in line behind a full-scale wailing temper-tantrum at our local Target and it nearly drove me to a crisis of faith.

Parents of the world, I salute you.  It is the hardest job I can think of.  You are a chef, a therapist, and a   corrections officer.*

I was sitting at Starbucks today when a ghost from babysitting past floated in.  I had a brief but intense period of babysitting towards the end of high school where I sat for about ten children with temperaments ranging from pleasant to eye-watering.  One of these kids was sweet and brilliant and is currently on her way to Princeton.

Then there was Peter.

Peter was like J.R.R. Tolkien's One Ring: the malignant force who had the capacity to corrupt any child in his immediate vicinity.

He pulled hair.  He called little girls fat.  He incited insurrection at every junction.  I once saw him break the steely calm of a yoga instructor, who cornered the nine-year-old Peter against a wall and shook with rage as she lectured him about making fun of children of divorce.

Ten years later, Peter's mom walked into my Starbucks.  I had blocked Peter out of my memories, because if I thought too hard about the day he fished tadpoles out of the pond with a tea-strainer and stepped on them, it would just make me upset.

It's amazing how all the memories come rushing back...  I wonder what little Peter is up to now.  Actually, now that I think about it, he's probably entering college this year...  The same year as my brother.  I can only pray that they don't go to the same college.

The thought of Andrew and Peter together at a fraternity party is truly chilling...

Sorry, this post had nothing to do with healthy eating.  Sometimes I just like to reflect.

*Coincidentally, I recently met a man from Montana who actually has been all three.  On top of that, he's apparently a skilled fly-fisher.  What have I been doing with my life?