My Old Addiction

Have you seen the documentary Babies? It came out a year or two ago, and it chronicles the first year in the lives of four babies from the US, Japan, Mongolia, and Namibia. It's good stuff. My wife and I watched it while she was pregnant, and I remember watching one scene in which a father works on his computer while his baby plays on the floor behind him. At times, the baby would look to its father, expectantly, and then go back to playing. The man's eyes never leave the computer screen, and I recall watching this and feeling that old, familiar wave of disapproval that the childless person often experiences upon observing a parent and child. I hadn't thought about that scene for a long time, until this past weekend, when Linda was at work and I was watching Violet for the day. I was attempting to get a number of things accomplished, while trying not to ignore Violet. More than once that day, I was at the computer, doing schoolwork, working on this blog, answering email - all while Violet looked on from inside her corral. I'm positive she was wondering, "Why won't he play with me?" while I stared at the screen, oblivious. I've probably said this before in a post, but I mean it more every day: The longer I'm a parent, the more I understand and forgive other parents.

Except when I don't. Because sometimes, you have to wonder, "What are they thinking?" Is it just me?

332 days old