The Switch Incident

Carrie's warned Shane repeatedly to be careful with the Switch. I've warned Shane repeatedly to be careful with the Switch.

So I was highly annoyed when I was the one to drop the Switch.

Yeah....I couldn't believe it either.

Shane and I were getting into the car and leaving the pool. I was holding a bunch of his stuff and mine which included the Switch. It slid out as I opened the car door, fell, and chipped a corner of the screen.

I didn't curse, but I know I said something like "You've got to be kidding me!"

On the ride home, Shane asked, "Are you going to tell Mom?"

"Yes, of course."

"Won't she be mad?"

"Yes, of course."

It ended up being a good time for a lesson. It came down to I knew Carrie would be upset and I didn't want her to be upset, especially at me, but I needed to tell her. It was the right thing to do and, though painful now, would be the best thing in the long run. 

"What do you think will happen if I don't tell her?" I asked. We talked for a little bit and I said, "Who do you think she'll blame if she finds it chipped later?" 

That got Shane thinking.

And Shane got to watch it play out. I came in, made sure Carrie was stressed over something else so that one more thing would send her over the edge, and then told her I'd dropped the Switch.

Predictably, she was upset. 

It turned out God smiled on me and only the screen protector was chipped. Carrie ordered a pair of new ones. She replaced the chipped one and the Switch is fine.....but hopefully, Shane learned something about character from all of it. 

Bare minimum, he learned that he's not the only one who screws up in the house.