Grady won a cake in his school’s fall festival. It was a perfectly shaped chocolate bunt cake placed on a brightly patterned plastic tray. This “trophy” cake sat on our counter for a few days following the festival until my husband Scott and I cut into it to enjoy. When Grady discovered that Scott and I had helped ourselves to a piece of his prize cake he was very upset. He dramatically stormed off to his room to demonstrate his anger. When I went in to inquire more about his hurt feelings this very mature, calm, conversation ensued:
G: “Mom, if you had won a cake in a cake-walk that was precious to you, and someone ate it without your permission, how would you feel?’
Me: “I would probably feel irritated and maybe a little bit hurt?”
G: “Yes. That is how I feel.”
Me: “Gosh I am sorry Grady, I should have asked first. I didn’t realize how important it was to you.”
G: “It was my prize, I won it, I wanted to save it.”
Me: “Well it is a cake- it will go stale if we don’t eat it you know.”
His composed, mature communication breaks down into big sobs….
Me: “What’s wrong? Why the tears love?”
G: (while sobbing) “I don’t like cake!”
For me, the Story of the Cake Walk is a lesson in remembering to see things through another’s eyes, through his eyes, and not assume that what is meaningless to me does not hold great meaning for another.
For him perhaps this memory will serve as a lesson in learning to savor experiences-to know that the memory of an experience or something symbolic of that experience is as precious as the thing itself.
Now let’s have some cake!
Spin Cycle 