July 05, 2003
I took some time off this week to spend with my sister and her son, who were in town for the holiday. We went to the Aboretum, the Children's Museum, walked through some woods along the Mississippi River, hit a couple parks, went swimming… the usual. It was a lot of fun, and boy am I wiped out. Might take me a while to catch up with some things I want to write here.
The Nephew is an outgoing, energetic little boy. It's really an effort keeping up with him; luckily the rest of us outnumber him and can take turns. What really amazed me is just how extroverted he is. Watching him engage people in conversation is draining. Yesterday at the lake, I found myself wanting to call him back from talking to someone or other ("stop bothering the nice man") but realized that my sister — although watching carefully — seemed content to let him chat away. It struck me that my discomfort with his behavior was not caused by any concern that he was talking with strangers (he was, after all, closely observed by three responsible adult relatives) but rather the fact that I would never be that outgoing. Ever. And I have trouble imagining that anyone would be.
I asked my mother if I or any of my siblings had ever been that extroverted. Nope. Not all of us combined.
So I wonder: what if my son is an extrovert? I know that the difference between introversion and extroversion is rooted in chemistry, so it's a distinct possibility. What would it take for me to deal with an extroverted kid? I'm exhausted after just a few days with The Nephew. And how well will I be able to judge what is genuinely inappropriate/impolite behavior as opposed to just something that makes me uncomfortable because I would never do it?
Punt, I suppose.
