If You Really Need Me

Elaina and I have a new bedtime routine.  It started several weeks ago when she was, “scared about bears”.  Seems these pesky bears were sneaking into her room and hiding in the wardrobe.

She’d wake up whimpering, usually after she’d been asleep for about an hour, and Heidi or I would go up and comfort her. 

Now, I don’t know about you, but I find a fear of bears in the wardrobe kind of charming.  Of all the things to be afraid of, bears in the wardrobe are pretty easy to reason away. 

When she started wanting me to stay, either in the middle of the night or even right at bedtime, I knew I needed a ritual to keep the bears away—one that didn’t involve me on her floor. 

So, I started saying each night, “Mommy and Daddy are right downstairs.  We always listen on the monitor.  And I’ll come back if you really need me.”

“You’ll come back?”

“Yes.  I’ll come back if you really need me.  Always.”

I was really afraid that she might use this against me.  It was all I could do not to stress the “really” part of that.  Incredibly, she’s never abused her power.  I’ve had to return to rid her room of bears surprisingly few times, and it’s never seemed like a ploy on her part.

Now, every night, as I’m putting her to bed, Elaina says, “You and Mommy are right downstairs,”  and she asks, “You’ll come back if you really need me?”

I haven’t decided whether her use of pronouns is flawed or if she’s making me the same offer I’ve made her.  Either way, my answer is the same:  “Always.”