The kids know how to get down...

It's sunny in Belfast. It's been close to beautiful the last while. The sun has also seen the arrival of the 'Summer Honey' which is a fascinating phenomenon enjoyed by the men of my nation for generations. And as I looked out my bedroom window the other day (while trying to resist the temptation of one of Leech's patented 'improvised rugby games') I saw that it had also brought out a number of my neighbours...sitting, playing, working in their gardens. I was struck by how close we all live together. All these little lives crouching right next to one another but in a nice middle class way which means we never have to make eye contact...or y'know...talk... A while ago when a neighbour had a problem with a light which we were leaving on at night accidently [She was being kept awake] she left us a note, pushing it through the letter box and skipping off despite the fact that we were all at home, a door away...

The contrast with where my brother lives, which is just up the road a lil, is interesting. I spent a wonderful little morning at his place the other day and thought about this while listening to stories of neighbours and seeing the kids playing in the street...it seems clear pretty quickly that there is not the same distance between people. They may even question your sexuality... (Not mine you understand...that's never happened... I mean, I've been hit on, but that's different...right?) So I'll make a nice generalisation and put it all done to class...?

Kids are different. They don't care about such things. Stuart and I spent a wee chunk of our afternoon playing with our lil neighbour and her wee friend...playing fetch with the dogs, laughing in the sun and even throwing in a little limbo :) When one of them started throwing stones at us (we were being bullied is what we're saying...by 7 year old girls...) we had to tell them off a little bit which led to this wonderful little exchange:

Stuart: Stop throwing stones.
Girls: Mumble mumble why? mumble mumble...
[Stuart then decided that this was a good moment to kick my butt]
Girls: Don't kick your brother.
Stuart: I can do what I like!
Girls: How come you can do what you like but we get told off for throwing stones?
Mark: It's because this is our yard. You can do anything you want when you're next door in your garden but not when you're over here with us.
Girls: Well then we'll go in to our garden...and throw stones at you...
Mark: Dammit...outwitted...

So basically we don't need each other. And we don't make the effort to pursue relationship for relationships sake. And I'm sure everyone has really 'good' reasons, as I'm sure I could dream up, for why this is the case. Meanwhile children just get on with it and throw stones at eachother.