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"I found an eyeball"

I'm talking to Theo about something serious when one of the little three kids comes up and says, "Mama, I found an eyeball."

Didn't even look at them, just held out my hand and something hard and round dropped into it. Put it in my pocket and continued the conversation.

Later I took the item out and it was a marble as, I think, I'd probably expected vaguely in the back of my mind since they've been playing with marbles lately.

But then I had to think: how far gone into the world of parenting and farming have I gone that a kid saying, "I found an eyeball" prompted me to hold out my hand without a glance?

I mean, the other day I'm feeding the cats when Gus warns me, "Don't step backwards or you'll step on a bird leg." Sure enough, the cats had left behind a little gift from their last hunting excursion. Didn't bother me. Totally forgot to clean it up. Later it was gone and I don't know where it went. Nor do I care.

Sometimes I think the whole reason we need the kids to go back to school is to re-civilize us. Left to our own devices I'm not sure how weird it could get around here.


P.S. Two days before this James left an unexpected gift of marbles under our covers in our bed. I got into bed and, as I shifted, a sudden wave of marbles rolled against me. Half-asleep, I yelped to Theo, who was fully asleep until that moment, "There's cold balls rolling into my crotch!" Pretty sure that is the weirdest thing I've ever said in bed.

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