Sense and No Sense

The other day I was sitting on the couch reading a book. Dennis was next to me on the couch watching a little TV. I looked over at Dennis and realized that the right knee of his sweatpants had a slit in them. The ankle of the other leg also had a slit. I asked Dennis what happened. Without hesitation, or the slightest indication that he thought he was going to get in trouble, he told me:

Dennis: I cut them (duh!)
Me: What? Where did you get scissors?
D: They were under the couch cushions (speaks volumes of my housekeeping skills -- if I can't see the mess, it doesn't exist)
Me: You can't just cut things!
D: It's ok. I didn't get hurt.
Me: I don't care! You ruined your pants. (There goes my mother-of-the-year award.)
D: I had to cut them.
Me: Why?
D: So I could reach my itches.

Behind each cut in his pants was a mosquito bite. He had to cut his pants to have easier access to his mosquito bites.
And you want to guess what my husband said when I told him what happened? "I'm impressed. I never would have thought of that." What the heck? Am I the only sane one in my house? No one with an ounce of common sense would have thought of that.
I don’t know how many 5 year olds have common sense, but Dennis has none. Not an ounce.
A few months ago, he was playing with a toy in his room. He had to use the bathroom, but he didn’t want his little brother to get his toy. His solution was to lock his bedroom door and shut it behind him. His toy was safely locked in his room. He went to the bathroom and came back to a locked door. He couldn’t get back in. The toy was definitely safe though.
He learned that day that a doorknob is a privilege and not a right.
Would it have made more sense to have taken the toy into the bathroom with him to protect it? Yes. Would it have been more sensible to pull up the legs of his pants to scratch his bug bites? Of course. Were his solutions just as effective and a bit more creative? Perhaps.
There has never been any doubt as to how intelligent and logical Dennis is. And he has recently erased all doubt about how much common sense he has. As a mother, I worry about what will happen to a man who is intelligent, but without common sense.
Ten bucks says it starts with a “p” and ends in “olitics.”