Munchkin-proof

There's a largish community garden on my property. Initially I had put up a shade-house for plants diagonally across the field near the far corner of the place, where there's another gate on another private road, still in my subdivision. In effect I have a big corner lot, fenced, at about ten acres. Once the infrastructure was in place for the shade-house it was nothing to add a garden and I hope eventually to grow something I can sell.

Meanwhile I'm trying to learn things by offering garden space to others, ostensibly in return for produce, but really to get things up-and-running and to learn about what to grow and how to grow it. There are munchkins there, little people, and they came with the mothers who have been running the garden. Last year it was a fortyish mom with two little girls, one of whom fell in love with a garden cart and pulled it around beamingly.

This year there are two single moms, so far, in their late thirties, with a little girl each. They're so cute sometimes it just kills you. I mean the kids. The other day there were three of them including a friend in a kiddie pool screaming with pleasure and splashing around. The older girls were aiming the hose at the littlest one and she would shriek standing there in her pudgy nakedness every time their aim came near. You can't not be affected.

My connection is not very close but you really ache for them to have good lives. I can't imagine what it's like for their mothers. I'll ask them. We're friendly and they also use the sauna up at the house occasionally and run around naked--I'm the envy of my acquaintances--so I'll engage them on it when they're all relaxed and mellowed after the sauna. I'll employ alcohol as well, if I need to, to get good information. I want to understand.

You must love them so much it makes you crazy. And it is such an uncertain world. Anyway I'll need to munchkin-proof the area around the garden to make sure there are no injuries. And the house and environs, where they come to use the outdoor bathroom. I want to munchkin-proof the country and the world for them. It's not my job but I'll try. It's somebody's job and if we can't give our kids a fair start in life we have failed.

Who knows if it will take hold but we need politics with a munchkin-proofing platform or at least a plank. I turn it over to you. I have gardening to do.

ADDENDUM: I will also munchkin-proof my mouth. I had quickly forgotten how you have to be careful what you say in front of a kid because you can't always reason it backwards. You can mention something and, wham, the kid instantly wants it and it's that or agony. It's so interesting. 

I love to see how, when and to what extent kids pick up on irony, the layering effect. It's early. Kids are amazing. Such little sponges.