A Rule You May Be Personally Acquainted With

Last night at Activity Days we had to review a rule that may ring familiar to some of you. It's called the "6 Feet on the Floor" rule, and it requires that you, when sitting in a 4-legged chair, keep all four chair legs, plus the two from your body, flat on the floor. You may have become acquainted with this rule sometime during your elementary school years, or perhaps as an adolescent during Sunday School. You may have even driven a teacher or two to their wit's end by your repeated, and always giggly, pushing of this rule's limits.

I'm sure you are all aware (and if you have not been made personally aware , you can at least imagine) the consequences of breaking this rule. On the mild end, they include being reprimanded multiple times. My girls last night were recipients of more than a few mildly stern reminders to keep six feet on the floor, please.

However, one girl was on the sorely embarrassed receiving end of what is generally accepted to be the most severe consequence of breaking this rule. After being reminded several times to keep six feet on the floor, please, Katie, who happened to be sitting backwards in her metal folding chair, with her legs dangling out where in the place where an oversized rump would usually hang, was still able to manage to rock back and forth, keeping only four -- and sometimes only two -- feet on the floor. At one point, her non-chalant rocking turned into a contorted desperation for balance as she slowly tipped backwards. The next thing we all knew, she was flat on her back, folded semi-neatly into the chair.

There was nothing we could do to save her. She was out of our reach. And really, sometimes it's better for one to make an example for all. Anyway, the rest of girls burst out laughing. It was a relieved sort of laughing, an "I'm glad that wasn't me" sort of laughing. Meanwhile, my partner, Sarah, and I were at a loss of how to react. The whole mess was remarkably funny, but, being the only two adults in the room, we weren't sure if it was acceptable to join in. Ultimately, we couldn't help ourselves. We looked at each other, and then at Katie, and then back at each other, and then we broke down in a giggle, an "I warned you this would happen, but my, you look ridiculous" sort of giggle.

So let Katie's example be a reminder to you all to keep six feet on the floor, please. Because I'd really hate to have to laugh at you in an "I warned you this would happen, but my, you look ridiculous" sort of way.