I Pledge

“Mom. Where is your shopping list?” Kiera asked me as we walked towards the grocery store.

“I have it on my phone.” I stated, holding my phone up.

She glanced at my phone before responding, “Why don’t you write it on paper?”

“Well, I do sometimes but it’s easier to keep on my phone. I don’t always remember to grab my list when I write it down and I always have my phone with me.” I explained.

There was a deep sigh from the judgmental, small person walking beside me. “Mom.” She stated in her ‘I’m-so-disappointed-in-you’ tone. “You don’t always need your phone.”

I opened my mouth to respond, but she wasn’t finished.

“Mom.” She said again, as if I was confused on whom she was referring to.

“I am 8 years old and I have lived my WHOLE life without a phone. You don’t always need to have one.” She responded.

Her WHOLE 8 years of life… Insert sigh here.

Several nights ago, she was lying on our bed watching our television. “It’s not really fair that I have a smaller TV in my room then y’all do.” She said.

I laughed. “That’s because we are the parents. Did you know that when I was your age, I didn’t even have a TV in my room?”

I wasn’t prepared for her next question.

“Did your parents have a TV in their room?” She inquired.

“Well… no.” I responded, unsure how this was going to play out.

She didn’t hesitate before asking, “Was there anything that was called a TV when you were my age?”

Ouch.

For a brief moment, I wondered if there was a return policy on my child. I’m kidding.

She is a good kid. We are proud of her. This last weekend, Aaron and I watched as she stood in front of over 60 people and led The Pledge of Allegiance. I worried that she would panic at the last moment. In fact, I almost volunteered to walk up in front of everyone with her. But, I refrained.

I knew that if she needed one of us, she would ask. When it was her turn to step up in front of everyone, she didn’t hesitate. She walked up to stand beside the speaker, turned, faced the audience, took a deep breath as she placed her hand over her heart and began to recite the pledge.

My heart swelled with pride as I watched her stand before all those people. We try to instill pride in our country. We may not always agree with the way things are going but I am proud to be where I am and who I am. I am proud of this child for having the courage to stand before adults and recite The Pledge of Allegiance. I am proud of her when she walks up to our armed forces and police officers and tells them ‘Thank You’.

I am proud of her… even the times that she thinks we are older than dirt and quite possibly didn’t know what a TV was when we were her age.

Rowonna McNeely works as the Communications Manager for the Brownwood Area Chamber of Commerce. She and her husband, Aaron are regular volunteers in the community, and have their hands full with their daughter, Kiera, along with three dogs and one cat.

Thank you for sharing in our weekly journeys. If you have missed any of our past stories, check out our blog page at www.lifea2k.net or drop us a line at lifea2k@yahoo.com.