Earth Hour
We joined in on Earth Hour last night. That isn't to say, though, that all members of my family were as enthusiastic about the idea as I was. Colin was all for it, but Nick absolutely was not in favor and yelled out at 8 p.m. that the Kids' Choice Awards were on and he "WAS NOT TURNING OFF THE TV!!" But he did...and did so without drama.
Once all the lights and all other electronic distractions were off, time seemed to simply stop. The silence fell heavily. Nick and Colin had no idea what to do. Colin suggested going outside to play baseball, but then they realized it was too dark outside. They ended up then rolling around on the floor roughhousing. I kept telling them to stop, knowing fully well how this sort of thing usually ends up. Nick insisted that this is how kids played in the 1800s and promised that no one would get hurt. I just let them go. After all, they weren't hurting a thing, just being noisy. Then, a bit unsure myself about what to do in the dark, I poured a glass of wine and sat in a chair near them. The roughhousing stopped, and we started talking. Not just banter to pass the time but deep conversation. We talked about our ideas of religion and spirituality. After a few deep moments, the boys decided they wanted to play cards by candlelight. Thankfully, no more roughhousing but rather pleasant conversation and one brother teaching the other how to play a card game.
Then it was 9 p.m., and just as quickly as the lights went off, they came back on, and we suddenly dispersed, heading right back to whatever we were doing before the hour of darkness. Nick and Colin ran to the TV, and I ran to my laptop.
From the other room, though, Nick yelled, "Happy Earth Hour, Mom!"
Once all the lights and all other electronic distractions were off, time seemed to simply stop. The silence fell heavily. Nick and Colin had no idea what to do. Colin suggested going outside to play baseball, but then they realized it was too dark outside. They ended up then rolling around on the floor roughhousing. I kept telling them to stop, knowing fully well how this sort of thing usually ends up. Nick insisted that this is how kids played in the 1800s and promised that no one would get hurt. I just let them go. After all, they weren't hurting a thing, just being noisy. Then, a bit unsure myself about what to do in the dark, I poured a glass of wine and sat in a chair near them. The roughhousing stopped, and we started talking. Not just banter to pass the time but deep conversation. We talked about our ideas of religion and spirituality. After a few deep moments, the boys decided they wanted to play cards by candlelight. Thankfully, no more roughhousing but rather pleasant conversation and one brother teaching the other how to play a card game.
Then it was 9 p.m., and just as quickly as the lights went off, they came back on, and we suddenly dispersed, heading right back to whatever we were doing before the hour of darkness. Nick and Colin ran to the TV, and I ran to my laptop.
From the other room, though, Nick yelled, "Happy Earth Hour, Mom!"
Nick and Colin trade in the Playstation for cards by candlelight during Earth Hour
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