Speaking of Michigan

Speaking of Michigan (in case you forgot, the last entry started off talking about Braylon Edwards), my husband and I have not only passed on Brownsfanitis to our kids, but also a love of the Ohio State Buckeyes. And while I did have to explain to my five-year-old that Michigan is not really evil, that it’s just a game, it’s still a hard distinction for a kid to make. Especially when he’s really into superheroes and grasping the concept of good versus evil and right versus wrong. And when his father will try as hard as he can to counteract my telling him that Michigan is not really evil.

But anyhow, I figured, the Buckeyes played the Wolverines, won, and that was that. We all wore our Ohio State clothing that day, but that was about it for him. I figured we still had to teach him to watch a game before he’d really learn that OSU is good and Michigan is bad. Maybe next year, we figured.

Well, we were wrong. One day, playing in the basement, my five-year-old and two-year-old were both playing with a jump rope. As the two-year-old pulled on it and tried to tie it around himself, my five-year-old had something else in mind. They tugged a while, each trying to play in his own way, until finally, I had to intervene. I told them to take turns and share, and explained to the five-year-old that while his brother wanted to play differently, it wasn’t wrong.

His response, “But he’s playing the Michigan way.”