Wednesday, November 9, 2016

Why did they choose him?

That was a question posed to me by my little 8 year old friend Maria who lives across the street and visits my dog almost every single day.  I always ask her how her day was when she visits and today she said, "I'm okay, I had a good day at school, how are you?"  I am not being grammatically incorrect here.  This is how she speaks.  In one long sentence with barely a breath in between words.  I replied, "I am tired.  I stayed up and watched the American election last night so I haven't slept much".  

Little did I know that an 8 year old girl from Canada would know anything about the American election. 

"How could they choose him?" she said.  She paused only slightly before she said with unmistakable shock, "Did you know he called women fat, and pigs!  Once he used the middle finger!  He's not very nice."  Another pause, for breathing I suppose, and she said sadly, "I can't believe they didn't choose her.  She seemed nicer".

This is not my child.  I am not her Mother.  I am not free to say whatever I want to another woman's child especially when I don't know their politics.  What I know is Maria's Mother is a Mexican American.  All her family live in the States but I believe Maria's Mom's parents or their parents were born in Mexico.  Maria's father is from Canada but lived in the US.  He owned a big software company there and sold it making a small fortune I am guessing from the size of their house.  He retained a board seat and consulting position so he works from home now travelling to the US for business regularly.  They live in one of the most beautiful homes in this area.  It's massive but so tastefully done that you long to live there, not just resent it's lavish size.  That's called taste, someone I know of should look that up.  

The conversation went something like this;

Me:  Honey, this isn't something you should worry about right now.

Maria:  I know.  I just don't understand what happened.  My Mom and Dad seemed really surprised he got picked.  I mean I don't really care, I am a kid and I don't have to live there.  I think my Dad is worried, he has money there.  It's where we keep a lot of our money.  

I chucked at that last sentence.  I am pretty sure the "she" of "we" doesn't keep any money there.  There is probably a ceramic pig with her name on it in her room.  I know she makes an allowance for her chore list, she told me so.   

Me:  Right now your job is to be a kid and not worry about this stuff.  Here's what I know but I am not sure it will help you.  There are basically two groups in the USA.  One that the man belongs too, and one that the lady belongs too.  The people of America chose his group honey.  That's it.  Fair and square.  They chose his group so he gets to be the leader now.  That's how it works, whether we like it or not.  It will be okay though.  

Maria:  I don't really understand.  Did you know he is going to build a wall around them?  

It needs to be noted here that her eyes were huge when she thought about a wall going around people.  It wasn't necessarily fear about someone she loved being walled in but the idea of a wall around people in general that bothered her.  

Me:  Honey, these groups I said they have in the US, they are really in charge.  They are called parties.  Doesn't that sound fun (I said with sarcasm only an adult would get).   Mr. Trump's party group is not going to spend the money to build a wall.  Walls are really really expensive and no one in his group is going to agree to the cost.  He said maybe he would have the other country pay for it.  Do you think your Mommy would pay to put a wall up around the country your Nana and Grandpa were born in?

Maria:  Gosh no.

Me:  Then I don't really think there will be a wall.  If no one will pay for it who will build it?

Maria:  Well that's good.  There was a girl at school today and.......(it was a long story, I will spare you the details but she ended it with).......she was sad and she cried.  I think people are sad today because of him.

I fell off my seat because I had no idea that a schoolyard story was going to loop back around to the election again.  She is 8 years old.  I really didn't know how much this was going to impact kids.  I mean I knew they heard things.  I had already spoken of what a poor example this man was setting for our kids, especially our girls but I didn't expect to hear about it from an 8 year old the day after the election.  Not an 8 year old with the attention span of a toddler aged fly.

Me:  I think people are sad today because they didn't think he would be chosen either.  I think you are right.  But it's done now, and now we hope for the best from him.  

Maria:  Okay.  

I could see her mind still trying to figure it out.  So I tried again.

Me:  Do you know who picked him?

Maria:  No.

Me:  White people.  People of our skin colour.  Men.  And women if you can believe it.  

Maria:  Really?

Me:  Yep.  Because they didn't know any better.  A lot of the people who chose him are not educated.

Maria:  So they aren't very smart?

*sigh*  Now I am struggling with whether or not to simplify this even more and call them all stupid or do I try to explain it further?

Me:  Do you know our mailman?  

Maria:  Yes.  I like mail.  

*chuckles*

Me:  Every day the mailman walks around carrying all the mail for us.  Every day, Monday to Friday.  Day in day out. No matter how hot or cold it is outside his job is to bring us the mail.  He works hard.  Most postmen are honest, hard working people.  Now, do you know how here in Canada if we go to the doctor we don't have to pay for it?

Maria:  Yes, it's free!  She exclaimed excitedly.  

Me:  Right, it is.  Well in the States it isn't free, they have to pay for it.  Every single month they have to pay so if they get sick, they can go to a hospital.  That mailman, who works so hard, has to pay money just in case he has to go to the hospital.  Well, they asked him to pay more monthly in case someone he doesn't know has to go to the hospital.  There are people who cannot afford to pay in case they get sick so they asked the mailman to pay for that person.  He wasn't really happy about that.  And his monthly fee kept growing and growing, getting bigger and bigger.  So, the man the people voted for said he would stop that.  He said he wouldn't make the mailman pay anymore for anyone else.  People chose that man because he said he would change stuff like that.  

Maria:  Okay.  Do we pay for the other person?

Me:  Yes, kind of, in a round about way we do.  (I was not about to start explaining taxes to the child).  We look after the people who can't afford to.  When you can barely afford to eat we help you.  

Maria:  That's nice.  I have a troll and no matter what, his hair changes every time I drop him.

With that she pulled out a troll doll and threw it across the room, ran over to it, grabbed it and showed me its hair.  And the world kept revolving and I was still sad about their choice.  I can only hope that Maria changes the world one day.  Before she left I said to her, "Maria, you know what though about the election in the States?  She won the popular vote!"  

Maria:  But then why didn't she win.

Me:  There are regular votes and more important votes.  She won the regular votes, yours and mine.  The most popular votes.  But he won the special votes, the important ones that chose the leader.  He won those.  But the people, they like her best.  

Maria:  Oh good, I am going to tell people that okay?  When they are sad I am going to tell them that she was the most popular one.  

LOL

God bless the children. 

















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