Last night as the boys and I talked at bedtime, lights out, nestled up in down comforters, they asked me about some of the German fairytales I grew up hearing.
The scary ones.
Even more frightening than the Grimm Brothers' tales, were the stories I read from a big yellow book I had that contained graphic illustrations of children who were not mindful...oh, what became of them!
There was the story of the boy who wouldn't eat his supper and so he danced and dwindled away to nothing, and died. His bowl of food was placed upon his grave.
There was a story about the little thumbsucker whose mother left him for the afternoon, and warned him, before she left, not to suck his thumb -- or else a man with giant scissors would come and cut off his thumbs. As soon as the mother walked out the front door, the little boy stuck his thumb in his mouth, and OUT jumped a man with enormous scissors, and he did cut off the boy's thumbs!
One boy was always looking up at the sky when he walked and so he fell into a canal and drowned.
Yikes! These tales were a not-so-subtle means of scaring us into submission to pay attention, eat our food, keep up with our grooming, and watch where we were going!
So when the boys asked me if I knew of any other scary stories, I really couldn't think of any more, and I made one up.
There is a big monster who comes into children's rooms at night, and he will chase you into a corner and sniff you, and he can detect whether or not you've eaten any fruit or vegetables that day. He hates fruit and vegetables, and so if he sniffs you and you've eaten them, he will pass on by, but if you have not eaten any, he gobbles you up, and crunches your bones.
This monster proved to be the most terrifying of the night, as my children eat fewer vegetables than they should, but none of them are thumbsuckers.
I don't mean to scare them, or maybe I do. There is a part of me that knows my German ancestors would approve, if not some parenting agencies. No doubt the boys will be eating some fruit and vegetables today, especially before bedtime.
6 comments:
Well done! I often wonder why it seems so much harder to raise my children (compared to my mother). I think the scare tactics work and applaud you! :)
Lol, one would almost think you enjoy scaring the boys!!!
Now, what's that child-line number??
Only joking. :-)
xx
It wasn't until I heard my mother singing Liam Russian children's songs that I realized how frightening and depressing they all were... Poor Mashenka!
That German book looks beautiful. It's nice that you remember your childhood. :)
xoxo
Ilana
What an engaging approach to teaching the importance of getting your five-a-day...lol.
Any stories for learning the importance of drinking some water each day? I'd be interested.
Lea x
Ha ha ha ha! I might keep the fruit and veg one in reserve for times of need ;)
KJxx
They do like a good scare! But, the boys always know they're just tales. I do take great care to keep them away from scary shows, and if I tell them a "classic" monster story, it tends to involve "four brothers" who ultimately triumph over the werewolf/monster/villain.
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