The Flu: A True Personality Test

It's interesting for me to observe how sickness can bring out the unique personality traits of my kids and expose how different these three really are from each other.

On Wednesday night Micah started throwing up. As it's happening you can envision ear-piercing screams, flailing body parts and sheer panic at what is happening to him. In between episodes you hear phrases like "I'm NEVER going to stop throwing up!" or "I'm going to DIE!!!"

Keziah woke me up at 4:30 am that same night and calmly told me she had just thrown up. I made her a bed on the floor and equipped her with a bowl to get sick in. For the next day she did not make a peep. She would silently throw up into her bowl (never missing the target, by the way), carry it to the bathroom to clean it up and then climb back into her bed. And later when I helped her a few times, she instructed me, "I usually dump it in the toilet and then rinse it out in the sink." Thanks for the pointers Keziah.

Seriously, she is the easiest sick child. Ever.

Then last night it was Silas' turn to get sick. I heard him yelling at me from his bed at about one in the morning, "M-O-O-M-M-Y!! I'M GONNA FROW UP!!" I figured he was bluffing. For the last few days of watching big brother and sister get the "sick" treatment, he kept trying to tell me how sick he was too. But I got him a puke bowl - just to humour him - and then climbed back into bed. After dozing off I heard more yelling, "M-O-O-M-M-Y!! I FROWED UP!!" Sure enough he had started throwing up and thankfully that puke bowl was handy - because he wasn't finished. That first throw-up is always the biggest. And grossest. And as he watched me rinse out the bowl in the bathroom I couldn't stop gagging.

And what did Silas do?

He laughed.

Thought my gagging was hilarious in the middle of the night.

I could go on to analyze their different reactions and predict what kind of people these kids of mine will grow up to be... But for now it's simply insightful.

And entertaining.