Pine Cones in Pockets and Other Stories

Dear Marshall,

Here are some stories about you.

I let you and Livia play with my geode collection one day. You were particularly fascinated with the geodes, and you thought it would be fun to hunt for more. You said, “Maybe I could dig up dinosaurs, and maybe while I was at it, I could dig up crystals!”

Your favorite TV show is “Odd Squad.” It’s a math-based TV show about a kid-run agency (Odd Squad) that investigates odd occurrences. You’ll move heaven and earth to watch the show. If permission to watch “Odd Squad” hangs in the balance, you’ll manage to straighten up the room that you had previously claimed was too hard to clean, and you’ll get it done fast, too, which is saying something. You told me, “I love ‘Odd Squad’ more than you. I love ‘Odd Squad’ more than you and Livia and Daddy and Cousin Colby and Cousin Quinn.”

One day you emphatically stated that you did not want to go to school. I said that you could stay home if you could give me a really good reason. You started with the easy ones: “It’s boring,” “I hate it,” and “I’m sick.” Then you started to get more creative, and came up with this: “It’s snowing, and if I go to school then I might not be able to get home.” Good one! But not quite good enough to keep you home. To school you went.

You have a vivid imagination. You like to pretend, for example, that the reptiles and amphibians in your science books are real. The snakes hiss and bite. The toads give us warts. The turtles and frogs exclaim that they’re not dangerous. Your interest in science made you want to read the book, but it’s your imagination that makes you want to read the book again and again.

One morning you and your dad were standing at the end of the driveway, waiting for the bus, and the temperature was 1.6 degrees. Here’s your conversation.

Marshall: Brrrrrr!
Daddy: Put your hands in your pockets.
Marshall: Pine cones!
Daddy: Well, take them out.
Marshall: Not now!

You kept those pine cones in your pockets for weeks, until they had been completely crushed. I finally had to pull out all the sticky, broken pieces. It was such a mess. But I bet you’ll find something to take their place soon. Probably more pine cones!

Love,

Mom

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