The Fatherhood Trap
Fatherhood has a funny way of assigning responsibilities you never volunteered for. A small family crisis, a little negotiation, and somehow I ended up becoming the Maths teacher. Here’s how it happened.
FATHERHOOD
Priyanjit Purkayastha
8/26/20262 min read
Today, while being engrossed in my office work, my son Neil, who did not go to school today, called me.
“Baba…” he said, crying. “Mommy scolded me!”
“Why? What happened? Did you do something?” I replied, slightly alarmed.
“No, I did not do anything,” Neil replied.
Before I could investigate further, my wife joined in from the other side.
“Priyanjit, you know I gave him some problem sums to do. He did them incorrectly. I only asked him to redo those sums. He doesn't listen. He was watching mobile the whole time. That's why he cannot focus!”
Ah. So this was not exactly a case of an innocent child being unfairly scolded.
I held my forehead in my palms, saved my office work, and resigned myself to solving and mediating between my son and wife over the phone.
“Kuki, you need to teach him gently. You know that he doesn't work well if scolded. And Neil, Mommy was only trying to teach you because you made some mistakes. She loves you.
“Kuki, why don't you revise the multiplication tables with him? Let him try to memorize them.”
Then came the moment that changed the course of the conversation.
“Neil, do you want Baba to teach you Maths?” my wife asked.
An immediate affirmative came from Neil.
“Yes, so Baba will teach you Maths in the evening,” replied my wife, sounding rather pleased with the outcome.
And just like that, I had entered the conversation as a mediator and walked out with a new job.
Maths Teacher.
“Okay, fine. I will teach him Maths in the evening after I return. Meanwhile, Neil, have your lunch. Then you have to sleep. As you are not feeling well today, a short afternoon nap will help you recover quickly.”
“Okay Baba,” replied Neil.
“Okay, have your tiffin, Priyanjit. And Neil, you have to sleep after lunch. Okay, bye, take care!” said my wife.
“Yeah, bye-bye!” I replied and ended the call.
I sat there for a moment and thought to myself:
A job well done. Everyone's happy.
I had successfully resolved a family crisis during office hours.
Now, back to work!
Except, of course, I had forgotten one small detail.
I had Maths homework to do in the evening.
Such is fatherhood. You try to solve one problem, and somehow end up taking on another.