Halloween goods are at 75% off. Aisles have switched from orange and black to red and green. The aftermath of vampires, goblins and ghouls has led to many a conversation with my little Ironman about... Monsters. Who knew that monsters are such an interesting topic to a three year old? Who knew that vampires were of interest to the preschooler and not just to the preteen?
Xavier's transition to his new room has been hindered by his fears of a) being alone b) weird sounds c) the dark and d) monsters. He asks me if I can sleep with him, even if just for a little bit. On his first night in his room, we looked in every imaginable place to find monsters and didn't find any. We even talked about scary weird noises and attributed them to the washer, the radiator, even the refrigerator, but not monsters. Xavier knows that monsters do not exist. At least, I've told him they don't, even though my conscience sighs when I lie.
How do you explain to your child that the monsters he's afraid of aren't the ones that he should be afraid of? The monsters that climb into bed with him and interrupt his sweet dreams aren't the ones to cry about. They're nothing compared to debt, loneliness, political corruption, fear, victimization, abandonment, inequality, and crime. Yet, to explain the monsters I see, and that I'm afraid of, would be to corrupt his innocence.
So, when he says he slept well because he didn't see monsters, I smile. My heart smiles at his innocence. When he wants me to stop something and says, "the monsters will hear you", there's no way that I can refuse. I suppose I can only take comfort when he says, "Mommy, the sounds aren't monsters. They're Jane." (our upstairs neighbor) At least the radiator isn't so scary anymore.
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