Ears and Pride

Remember the test of Megan's ability to forgive just over two years ago?  When Mike allowed Ellie to go and get her ears pierced because she asked a couple of times, when Megan had been asking for years....  (You can read about it here.)

For whatever reasons, Megan moved on and whether it was because of her pride, or she just didn't care, she rarely talked about getting her ears pierced anymore. Well, that may be a slight exaggeration, she mentioned it on occasion, but whenever she was asked if she was really serious, she dropped the subject.

A couple of weeks ago, while I was at a baby shower, 35 miles from home and not returning for a few hours, Megan called and without any greeting said, "Can I get my ears pierced today?"

One thing led to another, and later that afternoon, after what seemed like 372 hours of picking out ear-rings, dramatic, over-animated, nervous Megan sat anticipating the first hole punch! Ellie was inches away with her expressions alternating between smugness and excitement.

I love Megan. But she isn't exactly the easiest child when it comes to pain, discomfort, sickness, etc. But I've been pleasantly surprised. The stern, strict, over-rambled lecture on the way to the 'Ear Piercing Place' about me (or Dad) not wanting to hear anything about pain or discomfort for the first few days, must have sunk in clearly. We were both pleasantly surprised at her lack of a constant commentary about her new ear-rings. Actually, who am I kidding? We did hear over and over, "Why didn't I do this before?" or "I can't believe I finally have my ears pierced." But we heard nothing of discomfort or pain.

It's funny really-the whole ear-piercing thing. Discussing the particulars of ear-piercing (age, restrictions, etc) is quite commonplace among women/girls, and it has always been a source of questioning as to why Ellie, the younger sister, had her ears pierced but Megan, the older sister did not. Megan doesn't like 'the family ear-piercing story' quite as much as Ellie, Mike, and me, but I think the little tiny green studs in her ears, and the patiently waiting un-used birthday presents sitting in her jewlery box are bringing her closer and closer to embracing (and smiling at) the story that will surely go down in our family history as a definite highlight.

Now if Megan can figure out a way to just get Ellie to say 'Goodnight' and 'Good morning' instead of 'Don't forget to turn your ear-rings' or 'Have you sprayed your ears today?' She could enjoy her new accessories even more.