The Guest and the "Parasite"

My son sometimes dislikes my authoritative remarks to him when he truly loses his mind over petty behavioral aspects. Remarks such as, "Do not keep your feet on the sofa!" OR "Do not shout when someone is speaking on a phone call!" OR "Do not walk on the wet floor when someone is mopping!"—and the list goes on.

Last weekend, we invited a friend and his family over for a small get-together. The friend and his wife already seemed concerned about their three-year-old’s behavior, as he was a bit too excited to visit us. While we adults were busy talking about various topics, the three-year-old started jumping on the sofa. Next, he rolled over the beds in all the bedrooms—turn by turn.

Sarthak, our ten-year-old son, watched him profoundly. And then, he watched me. He watched my ignorance. My smile—which did not suit me in such a situation, Sarthak kept thinking.

The fun continued until the rendezvous ended with a delicious ice cream party. Finally, the guests were gone. Minutes later, we heard Sarthak speak.

"I did not like the way their son behaved. Why didn't you say anything to him?" Sarthak asked me in dismay.

"If it was me, you would have thrashed me by now," he continued, reading my face while waiting for an explanation.

"We were their hosts, son! It would have been rude to scold someone who came to visit us," I said, trying to control the situation.

"Were we the hosts? Because he was behaving like a parasite!" Sarthak burst out laughing, and his elder sister joined right in.

I was flabbergasted, utterly unable to speak further.