It doesn’t happen often, but last night my children shared a moment of such playful affection that I had to wonder: Is this just a respite from their usual bickering, or what actually lies beneath it?
Today is Adam’s 11th birthday. Elena will be 15 in May. Before dinner, Elena sidled next to him on our living room couch, and start squishing his face and burbling with over-the-top enthusiasm about how adorable he is and how he is growing up. And, Adam, for his part, met each of her compliments with equally over-the-top grunts of dismissiveness, as if he found her blandishments annoying, while he clearly didn’t.
Man, for centuries, I’ve been trying to explain to her that this is all she ever had to do—sprinkle him with a dollop of attention here and there—to recruit him as her loyal and appreciative sibling-servant. But more often than not, their first instinct is to go for their grievances.
I grew up. I’m sure they will too.
Meanwhile, here’s what they looked like a few years ago (see photo).
Eric Messinger is the editor of New York Family. He can be reached at [email protected].
