I'm Gonna Be Sorry

Daniel understands that punishment can often be mitigated in the face of remorse.

Last night, when he was very ready for bed, he decided to turn his cup of water upside down and effectively wash the hardwood floor. I decided that that was a request for "special handling", and took him off to bed immediately.

As he lay in bed, he cried, "I'm gonna be sorry, and then I'll come back to bed."

For the most part, "gonna be sorry" means "I will live out a life of remorse, steadfastly avoiding re-offense."

However, he usually prefers a more formal act of contrition whenever the result is bedtime or time out. For example, if he assaults Amy and I take him off to his room, he'll scream "I wanna tell Mommy I'm sorry."

The same with Ian, who for some reason stubbornly refuses to take Daniel at his word. When Daniel says he's sorry - which is the final, if perfunctory, resolution of every bout of discipline - Ian sometimes expresses disbelief. And he seems to become all the more upset when I tell him, "But Ian, Daniel is sorry. He just said so."

Sometimes, you just have to trust...