Table Topics

“Tonight’s dinner question is: what’s the hardest thing you’ve ever done?”

We are fans of Table Topics, the family edition. Their clever questions relieve the great burden I feel over teaching my children to make dinner conversation, when it’s the end of the day and my own words are few.

Table Topics keep is from resorting to tv trays and Sponge Bob.

Tucker said, “Painting a thousand houses.” We clarify that this is the hardest thing he can think of doing, since he hasn’t actually done it. That’s fair.

Dad said, “Studying and taking the exam to become a Licensed Clinical Social Worker.”

Mom said, “When I went to visit Uncle Rob when he lived in Japan. We needed to get off the plane in a country where we couldn’t speak the language, then take three subways and two buses on which we couldn’t read the signs, and then we needed to navigate walking directions to the hotel Rob had sent us to. If we got it right, he would be there an hour later. But if we got it wrong, there was no way to find him.”

“Did you find him, Grandma?” Their eyes are wide with anticipation.

“We did,” she smiles, “but it was a scary day.”

It was my turn. I wanted to think of something clever, something else. But I couldn’t.

I said, “The hardest thing I’ve ever done is learning to live and be happy again after Daddy died.”

And Tyler finished our circle. “My hardest thing is trying to make Mommy happy when she’s sad from missing Daddy.”

Thank you, sweet boy. May hard things come more easily.