Pictures are for the birds

Pictures are for the birds When Vea was in 1st grade he brought home his picture day form. I filled it out, included a check. I set out the most adorable (mom adorable) outfit for him, a super cute yellow plaid short sleeve button down collared top and his Osh Kosh overalls. I asked Vea if he was okay with the outfit and he said he was. So picture day comes and goes. I notice there's no pictures coming home with this kid of mine. I ask him if he has heard anything about the pictures. Vea says he hadn't. A few weeks later I ask him again. Still nothing he says. I call the school at that point to find out why it's taking two months for school pictures. The school informs me that pictures were handed back a month previously. I ask about Vea's pictures. They check and inform me that he didn't turn in a picture order form. I ask how that can be. I sent him to school with the order form and the check. Heck, I had ordered the biggest package. So now what I ask? The school informs me that there is a picture make up day in 2 days. Whew, okay, so we'll try this again. When Vea gets home from school I tell him what's up. I've talked to the school, he didn't turn in his form/check and make up day is in 2 days. What in the world happened to the form/check and why didn't he turn it in and why had I been waiting and asking him this whole time for something he knew wasn't going to happen. This kid of mine, WOW. I have him sitting down in the living room and it's kind of a big deal to find out what the heck is happening here. Then the story unfolds, Vea tells his magnificent tale. The day of the pictures Vea's holding the form in his hands. He's walking to school just minding his own business. Just focused on getting to school and turning in his picture form because he knows how important it is to me. He's making sure he doesn't get dirty because his outfit needs to stay nice. Then, suddenly, the sky turns dark and grey, it's like the heaven's opened up, there was wind and thunder and then, BIRDS, lots of birds flying around from the sky. They were flying towards Vea, right at him. Then one bird flew directly at him and grabbed the form right out of his hand. The bird was too fast for him and he knew I would be upset about the picture form. He was sure I wouldn't believe him because he could hardly believe it himself. He was in shock he said. He was scared he said. He just tried to get through the rest of the day at school. He wanted to tell me but he said everyday he would look for the bird hoping he could find the form so he could turn it in on picture make-up day and get new pictures. REALLY? Again, WOW. This kid of mine, I realized he was either going to win a Noble Prize for some amazing work of literature that would inspire people or head up a criminal organization. Remember this kid was in 1st grade. Just 6 years old. I figured I had to really shake things up to get to the truth. So I proceeded to take off his bedroom door, remove all video games, leaving only books in his room. I figured if I turned his room into a prison cell and illustrated what prison would look like with helpful tidbits thrown in about a cellmate named,"Bubba" he would fold and just tell me what had happened. Ha, boy was I ever wrong. My until recently Tongan only speaking child became enthralled with books, reading Harry Potter and The Wheel of Time. Yes, at 6 years old. (This book part is important for a later Vea story because of his keen intelligence and ability to not only read at that age, read in English, and read at that level). So what to do? This went on for a few weeks. Vea holding firm to his story while reading more stories (see how that didn't work?). Me, I'm at a loss for what to do, no bedroom door, stories about Bubba, and no video games didn't shake this kid up, NOT AT ALL. So, I did what any other self-respecting mother would do. I got on my hands and knees, in tears and begged and bribed my 6 year old to tell me the truth. Vea put his hand on the side of my face and said,"Mommy, I have a surprise for you (still sounded like SURPISE with his thick Tongan accent." He pulled the re-take pictures out of his back-pack. There they were and he had changed his outfit a little, like modified it completely. In a size too small aloha shirt with a too small sweater barely stretched over it and sandals with white socks on looking every bit the Tongan kid he was I got my Vea pictures all right. His crooked little smile showing off the teeth he had just lost. Priceless. Precious. Perfect. I handed over the video games, I put the door back on. I realized something about my little prince, he would rather lie to me then tell me a truth he thought would hurt my feelings. We had a long discussion about telling the truth that day. I promised as long as he told me the truth about anything he wouldn't get in trouble and if I was sad about a truth I would be okay. That's what mom's do, we manage to be okay. We hear things we don't like but we always love, no matter what. Sure there would be consequences for the actions, righting a wrong etc. but not punishment for truth telling. To this day, that kid has never again lied to me. He's used creative wording to answer my questions, but never again lied. Oh and I never asked him to wear overalls again. Ever. — with Tiare Gonzales.