The Law of Natural Consequence

I'm picking Anna up from school today and as we're walking down the hall, the school director hears Anna say, "no" when I ask her if she wants to put her coat on. It's 39 degrees out.

Director pokes her head out of her office, "Anna don't you want to wear your jacket? It's COLD outside!"

Anna: "no"

Director: "Anna do you remember what we said about coats in chapel today? What did we say?"

Anna: "to wear them."

Director: "right! You don't want to get sick!"

Oh please don't tell me the director thinks that you can get sick by....

Director, to me: "you know, students and teachers are dropping like flies around here, so we allllllllllll need to wear our coats!"

My God I think she's serious.

Me, acting enlightened: "Ooooh I seeeeeeeeeee. Anna do you want to put on your coat out by the door?" Strategy: make Director think I agree with her, try to brush this off, do not confront ignorance.

Anna: "no"

Director: "well this is what we do around here: do you want to put it on yourself, or Miss Walker, or mom to put it on?" With the hint of voice like I didn't know the only-give-them-options-you-agree-with trick...hello?

And I stand there conflicted, with the words "natural consequence" flashing in my head but unsure of how to use that in respectful self defense.

Anna: "nobody"

And I'm saved by the onslaught Of a group of parents rushing through and we move down the hall.

Here's how I come across to Director, I'm sure: a spineless mother who doesn't know how to get her kid to listen. But the real deal is that everyone knows you don't get sick by not wearing your coat! Your teachers and students get sick because they inoculate each other with their germs, and cold and flu season is such because when it's cold outside, people tend to congregate indoors more, thus sharing their germs more easily. There is no physiological basis behind getting sick because you're cold. Old wives tale.

So instead of being a disrespectful know-it-all parent (one of THOSE moms), I allowed myself to look like I don't know how to get my kid to wear a coat.

Here's how you get a kid to wear a coat: let them outside when it's 39 degrees. Works for me.