Forgiveness, Not Permission

Him, casually:

"Hi Mom, we're still at the lake,

and are you ok with me

cliff jumping?"

Me, not panicked,

exactly, but nervous:

"Well, where exactly are you,

and how high is the cliff?"

Can you tell how deep the water is?

Did Mrs. DeGroote say it was ok?"

Him, dismissively,

with junior-high-boy sang-froid:

"Mom, Mom, Mom--

I already jumped.

I'm fine. It was only, like, forty feet.

Babies were doing it."

Me:

"Ok then! Excellent!

Carry on. I'll see you a little later today."

Him:

"Bye, Mom. Love you!"