The Love Bugs

Aislinn: Mommy, I have to write a story for Student Treasures and it's really hard.

Mommy: What is Student Treasures?

Aislinn: I don't know.

Mommy (figuring it must be a class anthology): What's hard about it?

Aislinn: It's going to be really long, and we need to use lots of adjectives and I've only written three chapters so far.

Mommy: Well what is it about?

Aislinn: It's about a lady bug named Maria. In Chapter One she graduates from college. In Chapter Two she has two kids and in Chapter Three she goes out with hot guys.

Mommy (oh, God, please tell me this hasn't been seen by the teacher): She needs to date the hot guys and get married before she has kids. Can you switch the chapters, or change Chapter Two to be the last chapter?

Aislinn: I don't feel like erasing it.

Mommy (I will remain calm, but oh, God, please tell me we can change this before it goes to publication): You have to. People need to get married before they have kids...

After some persistent convincing on my part and a lively debate on who has kids but isn't married (actually, she couldn't think of anyone), Aislinn finally agreed to rework the plot. Today after school she reported that she was rewriting the whole thing rather than erasing Chapter Two, so hopefully the crisis has been averted for now.

I can't imagine where this view of the world came up. Oh, wait, yes I can. The Disney Channel and it's nonstop lineup of single parents. Walt must be rolling in his grave.