Friday, March 2, 2012

Just a Bar of Soap



--It's always fun to discover that a common, every day object you've taken for granted your whole life has become an objection of joy and affection by the very young--namely your grandchildren, ages 5 and 7.
--I was in charge of showers one night and prepared the shower stall with Johnson's head to toe body wash and two wash cloths. There has always been a bar of soap on the shelf but never was an issue in the past.
--It was my granddaughter Lilly's turn to go first. I got her settled in, and she asked for time to just stand in the shower awhile. I let her do that while I got her pajamas ready and tooth brush filled with paste. I pulled back the shower door, and there she was sitting on the shower floor with the bar of soap completely lathered up, coating her legs until they were white. She was completely enamored by the soap's effect. It took awhile to rinse off that little snow princess.
--Next, my grandson Lucas went into the shower and asked for some water time, too. I left the bathroom for a bit, but soon heard a bunch of knocking noises. I returned and opened the shower door. He was using the soap like a hockey puck, sliding it as hard as he could against the shower wall. The harder he smacked it, the higher it bounced off!! He was having a great time. Enough play time again!!
--I asked my son later if L and L had ever used a bar of soap before, and he admitted they never have been given that liberty.
--It's good to know that something so simple and basic can still catch the attention of the very young and create a little clean fun!

11 comments:

  1. This cracked me up! It's funny, but in this day of shower gels and body washes, I'm guessing there are probably lots of kids who are soap-bar deprived. :)

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  2. too funny - I guess liquid soap is the norm now.

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  3. I have sometimes wondered if the poor soap bar will eventually be obsolete, like so many other things of the past. It just can't compete with the fancy scents and foams of the shower washes that don't leave that messy residue on a soap dish!

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  4. What fun to hear about Tam. It never occurred to me that some kids have never had a bar of soap in the shower. Shower gel these days is just the thing, isn't it? I love the mystery of the way you wrote it. I couldn't imagine what had happened. Great lead up to the reveal.

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  5. Never been given a bar of soap, hard to believe. I had to laugh when they each had their own way of exploring this new object in the shower.

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  6. I wonder when they will learn that Ivory bars float? Probably at your house! Great snippet of the joys of being a kid, playing with a cheap little bar of soap that we grown-ups take for granted.

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  7. So typical of the differences between boys and girls too. Hardly ever find the girl in there kicking the soap to see how high it will go. It's getting harder to find the bars of soap at the store now. I'm going to be sad when they are gone!

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  8. This was funny. Not just what happened but also the way you wrote it.

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  9. I agree with Wendi. We used ivory because it floats and you can find it. I used to carve a fish shape out of the bar for my girls many years ago! The whiter the better.

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  10. I love this story. Yout tell it so well. Your grandchildren's reactions to the soap and your reactions to them are fabulous. I have to admit that I only recently reintroduced myself to bar soap after years of bodywash. I'm having an experience similar to Lilly's every time I hop in the shower! :)

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  11. What a great and funny story!!!

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