7 year old, Jake was playing on the floor with his hot wheels when his father came home from work.
ERRRR….VROOOOM…..SCREEEEECH…CRASH!
He looked up as his dad closed the door, got up and wrapped his arms around his legs.
“How was work, Daddy?”
The father looked down at him with a genuine smile and a pat on the head and replied,
“Long, son….real long. I’m glad to be home….where’s Momma?”
“Getting ready to go to the store. She says she went to the cupboard and it was bare.”
The Dad smiled.
“Just like the story, huh?”
“Yeah, I like stories….you used to tell me a lot of them before you started working nights. Now I never see you before I go to bed….and when you get home…you’re too tired.” Jake said with a sigh.
The Mother walked out from the back room and said,
“Hey honey, sorry…but I gotta go shopping before my meeting with the school. Can you watch Jake while I go? And by watch, I don’t mean put on a movie and go to sleep. He is too young to be left alone.”
Jake smiled big, Daddy smirked.
She kissed her husband and her son and left to run her errands.
“Ok, buddy. Here’s the plan. I’m gonna sit in the recliner and…”
Jake interrupted him,
“HEY! Momma said no sleeping!”
Dad inhaled and exhaled deeply as he looked down at his son and replied,
“How about we make a deal….I sit on the sofa and relax…and you sit next to me and tell me a story…”
“Really? You want ME to tell YOU a story? I never do that afore.”
“I know…..deal?”
Jake thought about it by rubbing his hand over his head, just like his Dad did when he was thinking, and looked back up at him with a confident and excited answer,
“DEAL!”
Dad headed over to the sofa and sat down to get comfortable. He immediately let out a sigh and his eyes began to slip downward.
Jake noticed and jumped up onto the couch with a plop, which caused Dad’s eyes to quickly re open.
“You can’t go to sleep! You gotta hear my story, first!”
“I know, I know…I’m sorry. Let’s hear your story.”
“Ok…here it goes…”
One up on a time in a place far far far far……far……far away….there was a giant. An the giant lived with a little giant. The little giants name was Ja…ck. it wasn’t Jake…..it was Jack.
An Jack would always be waiting for the giant to come home from doing his giant stuff that he did all day and sometimes at night for the while if the giants boss made him.
Dad cut in.
“Is this a “real” story?” He asked concernedly.
Jake fidgeted a bit, rubbed his head and replied with a wince,
“Real?….giants aren’t real Dad….just listen to the story.”
Dad sat up straighter in his seat and intently listened to the story of Jack and the Giant that his son was spinning.
While the giant was doing his giant stuff, Jack would be at the giant house waiting for the giant to get home….wait…I already said that…the big giant would get home and be too tired to show the little giant, who whose name was Jack…and not Jake…what he had to do to someday be a BIG GIANT TOO! All Jack could do was try to do big giant stuff by himself…because the big giant always wanted to rest to be ready for more big giant stuff instead of showing little giant, who was Jack and not Jake, how to be a giant too. So…so…so the big giant kept getting gianter and the little giant kept getting smaller an smaller an smaller……an smaller…..until the big giant got home one day and couldn’t see the small giant named Jack….not Jake, and SPLAT…he stepped on him…..dee end.
“Wow!” The Dad said, “how could I possibly sleep after that story?”
Jake shrugged his shoulders and replied,
“I du no. You like my story? It wasn’t real….giants can’t get smaller…only bigger.”
“Well son, the best part of any story that isn’t “real”….is that over time maybe you want to change the story if you think it would sound better. Maybe…the giant gets busy and forgets how important it is to spend real time with the little giant and before he SPLATS him….the big giant changes.”
“How would he do that?”
“By starting to show the little giant how to be a big giant…..And by realizing that the little giant can show the big giant a few things about what’s important…..You wanna go to the park and play catch….or…..whatever you want?”
Jake asked quizzingly,
“You wanna DO something? Won’t you be tired for work later?”
Dad replied,
“Work isn’t going anywhere son and I need to enjoy time with you instead of sleeping it away….one day you may not want to spend with me and I will be the giant that feels like he’s getting smaller. I love being your giant. Get your shoes on.”
Jake ran back up his room to get his shoes.
In the time he had by himself before he returned, the Dad wiped a tear from his eye and thought,
“Giant lessons from a small boy….talk about an eye opener.”
Images from fineartamerica.com
Good2begone 