
On a not unusual Irish rainy afternoon, I was driving daughter number one to meet some friends. Half way through the other side of town, I realised she is not wearing her jacket. I, didn’t think necessary to remember her to take it, as I, honestly thought that at nearly 17 she would have taught herself how useful a rain jacket could come when you are going to stroll around with your friend in the lashing rain.
“Mum, stoop! Why do you always have to make a big fuss of everything? I am telling you I won’t get wet.” Unfortunately, my concept of obvious doesn’t match with hers and this is what I get after pointing out the (my) obvious, along with a bombastically killing side eye. The front eye was still glued to her phone to keep texting.
I have now two options: 1- start the 135fth fight of the day; 2- simply acknowledge that my daughter has the superpower of repelling the rain.
I proudly go for option 2; I mean how many people out there can say they gave birth to a superhero with a superpower.!!!!!
The rest of the afternoon, I spend it thinking about who would she be more like in her parallel life: Clark Kent, a Peter Parker or a Diana Prince? And of course her superhero name: wet girl, rain girl, water woman…..unfortunately none of them sound enchanting, or the slightest right.
It comes the evening, and here she is, my superpower girl, walking through the door as dry as I left her. Her superpower is real! But, if only that, after taking another look at her I also realise that it must not be her only superpower: she can do magic too. Yes, because her clothes appear to be of different colors and shape than when she left home. How amazing!!!
The following morning, when I go to wake her up for school, there are at least 15 paper tissues on the floor beside the bed, her nose is red and stuffed and she talks like a cartoon. You guess…It turned out that she had to borrow dry clothes from her friend because her superpowers failed her. She got in fact soaked and she is spreading cold virus and germs through the household.
Now, only one conclusion to come to: considering that, over the years, she is the one who brought to the house head lice, chicken pox, a few chest infections and covid, and maybe that is her real superpower: She is a spreader, and I can still proudly say I gave birth to a superhero girl with super powers.
P.S
Happy late mother’s day to you all as this post should have gone up two weeks ago for mother’s day….but, unfortunately, the spreader girl tried her new superpower upon us all.