After dropping Maeve off at gymnastics this afternoon, Hilde
and I saw a Ford Flex.
Me: Hilde, I love that car.
Hilde: It’s too boxy
mom. You are not boxy, you are more
octagonal.
Me: What?
Hilde: Your natural
shape is an octagon.
Me: It is?!
Hilde: Yes.
Me: Hmmm. What shape are you?
Hilde: I am
circle. Maeve is either a triangle or a
square.
Me: Why are you a
circle?
Hilde: Because I am
smooth.
Me: Smooth, huh?
Me: What shape is
Maeve, again?
Hilde: Either a
triangle or a rectangle.
Me: Why? Oh wait, I get that one.
(Maeve is definitely an equilateral triangle or a
square. That girl is all right angles. She is the T-square of our family.)
Me: So why am I an octagon?
Hilde: I don’t know
you just are. It’s just your shape.
Me: Hmmm, an octagon,
really?
Hilde: Really.
(I am still wondering why Hilde thinks I am an octagon. For the record, I think she is referring to
the shape of my soul. My body needs
work, but I not octagon shaped.
The possibilities are now running around in my
head. Does Hilde think I am octagon because
I have many sides? Does this mean I do
too much? Does she think I am all over
the place? Why do I think that an octagon
leans towards busyness? Maybe it just
means I have lots of angles. Why does this have to have a deeper
meaning? Why can’t I just let an octagon
be an octagon? This is driving me
crazy. Why does my ten year old daughter
think I am octagon? I need to know. I need to know because maybe it will help me
understand who my kids think I am. Maybe
it will help me be a better person or a better version of me. What if knowing why I am an octagon is
some kind of missing link to unlock a vital piece of self-understanding?)
On the way back to get Maeve two hours later, I was still thinking
about being an octagon. So, I continued
the conversation.
Me: What shape is
dad?
Hilde: I’ve never thought about it.
(Why? Why have you
never thought about what shape your father is, but you are so sure your mother is
an octagon?!)
Hilde: I guess he is mix between a circle and
rectangle.
Me: What would that
be? A crescent?
Hilde: Sure. Why are you still thinking about this?
Me: Just wondering.