Blog14.A Teachable Kook

In teachable moments, who ends up learning the lesson?

‘Teachable moments’ is a dreadful idea, mainly because it comes pre-baked with experiential arrogance. Arrogant because I have determined who, usually one of my kids, has an important lesson to learn, and it is my duty to bestow this knowledge upon them. Most times I shoot wide of the mark, and I end up learning the lesson.

On the day in question, I had one job to do. Buy candy for party favours. Nothing more! If that is the sole-objective, then why am I in the most expensive sweet shop in the city–albeit one with sugary delights draped over marble pedestals? $28 for

a mix’n’match box of sweets? Yowza! It defied logic.

We left the candy shop empty handed. Why? There was a lesson to be learned. Understand what you’re buying I said, which is why we were on the way to Dollarama, triple the candy volume for ½ the price. To my mind, frugality and consumer intelligence are important. For the record, the inflated price of the ‘candy’ experience didn’t bother me as much as knowingly being gouged did.

Needless to say my disappointed passenger was quiet in the car. It was also Saturday afternoon and sunny. Peak errand time, so traffic was thick. That 35 minute commute to the dollar store, 10 under normal conditions, gave me plenty of time to mull over my behavior. Suddenly $28 didn’t seem so steep.

I went broke Trying to impart a lesson that day left me broke, time broke and, temporarily, relationship broke. Hours and gas were wasted backtracking across the city and our supposedly fun outing left us tired and cranky. Had I not been so self-righteous and bought the $28 candy box, we would instead be at home, content with a pleasant outing logged in the memory bank. Then I hear myself saying, ‘but nobody learned anything.’

Yes, the utilitarian objective was achieved. We brought home a basket packed with sour patch kids, teeny Twix bars, and stale gum balls all for a reasonable cost. What lesson did I actually teach her? Apparently, one where saving money is prioritized over time. I missed huge. It’s because the more expensive option usually ends up the cheapest in the end. Time always trumps money. Maybe someone did learn something after all.