Commerce
A few weeks ago, my son went out and bought quite a few packs of gum. He is always trying to get the girls to see what a “nice guy” he is, even though they don’t always believe him and are not always receptive to him (Poor guy 
). Most of the injurious things he does to them are accidental. So, the gum he bought has become his dream answer! Now, he has a way to get the girls attention and get them to play with him, and they even get rewarded for doing it! In a moment you’ll understand why this post is entitled, “Commerce”.
John came up with a point system, by which the girls can win points in order to “earn” pieces of gum. I’m told the girls are eligible for winning points by answering trivia questions properly, or doing some of his chores, or playing the most fun game of all, called “Dungeon Guy”.
“What is Dungeon Guy?” you might ask. According to Catherine (Age 8), everyone gathers around to brainstorm a solution to a hypothetical problem. The funniest one of all, she says, was last night when John said the following:
“You see the dark shadow of a man outlined in a window frame! And he’s holding a gun! WHAT DO YOU DO?!”
Catherine & Clare unanimously call out, “SHOOT HIM!”
Neither Catherine nor Clare got any points for this one as John says, “Nice going, guys! You just shot MacGyver!”
In another episode in this game John asks the girls, “There’s a wood crate on the ground, you have to walk past it. Do you hammer it to try to get it open? Or run past it as fast as possible?” Clare says, “hammer it open”, while Catherine says, “Run past it quick!” John announces that Catherine got the points for that game, as Clare hammered it & it blew up!
Clare asking for a piece of gum, gets this question from John, “What is 4 x 4 x 4 squared? And then what is its square root?”
For the past week, all my kids have the unmistakable smell of mint gum wafting in the air as they pass by me.
This system of “commerce” has brought them together & they have truly had fun with each other because of it! They have been so engrossed in this game, that they have been asking John for trivia questions at every opportunity. It’s nice to see their camaraderie and teamwork 
.
