JUGGLING

My son Alex walked into the kitchen and looked at me tossing a clementine up in the air, catching it in one hand and than the other.

“What are you doing?” he asked as he went over to the cabinet and pulled out a loaf of bread.

“Teaching myself to juggle.” I kept tossing it while he went and got the jar of peanut butter.

“You know juggling is done with more then one thing.” He got the jelly from the refrigerator and went over to the silverware drawer to get a knife.

“Very funny.” I tossed but missed and it landed on the floor making a wet squishy sound. “Oops!”

“I’m not eating that now.” Alex warned.

“No worries.” I picked it up and tossed it in the trash before going over to the bowl of clementines we had on the butcher block. “These aren’t in the best of shape anymore. I was going to throw them out but then…” I tossed a new one in the air. “Why not practice with them.”

Alex began making his peanut butter and jelly sandwich. “What made you decide to learn how to juggle?”

“I was reading about how you should keep your brain active by learning new things.” I missed again and heard another splat as it landed on the floor. “Darn it!” Tossing it in the trash I grabbed another one.

“So why are you starting with just one?” He leaned back against the counter top and took a bite of his sandwich.

“Well, if I’m having trouble catching just one it seems ridiculous to move on to more don’t you think?”

Alex put his sandwich on a paper towel then came over to the butcher block and grabbed three clementines.

I stopped tossing mine and watched as he easily started juggling the three.

“You still remember how to do that?” I’d forgotten when he was younger we’d put a juggling kit in his Christmas stocking.

He caught all three and placed them back in the bowl. Shrugging his shoulders. “It’s like riding a bike. Once you know how you never forget.” He went back to eating his sandwich.

I raised my eyebrows. “You mean like that time we went bike shopping for all of us, and when I tried to ride mine I slipped and fell and took out a whole line of bikes?”

Alex started to laugh. “Oh, yeah! I remember that!” He began shaking his head. “What happened?”

“Clearly I forgot how to ride a bike.” I said in a monotone.

“No you didn’t! What happened again?”

“The bike salesman wouldn’t let me try a bike where I could put my foot flat on the ground. He said your leg was supposed to be fully extended on the pedal.” I shook my head still clearly annoyed at the memory. “Once I was done riding it I went to get off and my foot slipped and down I went!”

“Taking the whole line of bikes out with you!” Alex finished.

“I’m sure I taught that salesman a lesson.” I tossed the clementine up in the air again.

“Never let a customer get off a bike near all the other bikes?” Alex laughed.

“Something like that!” I laughed as I caught the clementine and tossed it in the trash.