次男と歩く-怪我

次男が学校から帰って来た時、怪我をしているのが分かった。

明らかに、転んだか何かで顔をすりむいた状態だった。

でも、次男に聞いても、何が起きたのか分からない。

次男は自分で説明が出来ないので、YES/NOクエスチョンで聞くしかないのである。

「転んだの？」
「YEAH」
と答える次男。
「学校で転んだの？」
「YEAH」
「PLAYGROUNDで転んだの？」
「YEAH」
「誰かに押されて転んだの？」
「YEAH」
「友達に押されて転んだの？」
「No」
「誰に押されて転んだか分かる？」
「YEAH　せんせい」

次男のいう先生とは、年上の人という意味でもあるので、もしかしたら上級生に押されたか、ぶつかってしまったのかとも思いました。

あごの下から出血があり、右頬全体に擦り傷とそれに伴う腫れがみられました。

妻の所には学校から写真と連絡が入っていたようですが、その事を知らない私は、学校で何が起きたのか全く分かりませんでした。

長男はこのような怪我をして帰ってくる事はありませんでしたし、何かあっても長男はその説明を自分で出来ましたので、親としては状況を把握するのに苦労しませんでした。

しかし、次男は言葉に障害を持っていることから、次男自身が説明をすることはほぼ難しく、こちらがYES/NOで答えることが出来る質問をすることで探るしかないのです。

結局、学校の先生からのレポートでは、クラスで近くの公園に遊びに行き、普段学校にある遊具とは異なる為、次男はとても喜び遊んでいた様子。

円錐形のぐるぐる回る遊具に夢中になりはしゃいだ次男は、つかまっている手を放すと落っこちるということへの理解が出来ていなかった為、大はしゃぎで手を放してしまい、半分氷と化した雪の上に顔から落ちたようです。

それでも泣くこともせず、顔を綺麗に拭いてもらっている間も、その遊具が気になり、「早く遊ばせろ」と言わんばかりに次男は怪我の事は一切気にしていなかったようです。

家に帰ってきて、次男の顔を見たときにはびっくりしましたが、先生からのレポートを見て、次男らしいと安心しました。

長男とは全く異なる次男に、両親としてまだまだ驚かされっぱなしです。

When my second son came home from school, I found him injured.

Obviously, he had fallen or something and had scraped his face.

But when I asked my second son, he couldn't tell me what had happened.

Since my second son could not explain himself, I had to ask him with a yes/no question.

Did you fall?"
YEAH.
My second son answered.

Did you fall down at school?
YEAH.

Did you fall at PLAYGROUND?
YEAH.

Did you fall because someone pushed you?
YEAH.

Did your friend push you?
No.

Do you know who pushed you?
YEAH, Sensei.

Since the second son's reference to a Sensei（Teacher） also meant an older person, I wondered if perhaps he had been pushed or bumped into by a senior student.

He was bleeding from under his chin, and his entire right cheek showed abrasions and associated swelling.

My wife had received a picture and contact from the school, but not knowing this, I had no idea what had happened at the school.

My oldest son never came home with these injuries, and if anything happened, he was able to explain it himself, so as a parent I had no trouble understanding what was going on.

However, since my second son has a speech impediment, it is almost difficult for him to explain himself, and the only way to find out is by asking questions that he can answer with yes/no answers.

In the end, the school teacher reported that the class went to a nearby park to play, and my second son seemed very happy to play on the playground equipment because it was different from what he usually sees at school.

He was so excited to play on the cone-shaped equipment that spun around in circles that he didn't understand that if he let go of the hand that was holding him, he would fall off the equipment.

Still, he did not cry, and while his face was being wiped clean by the teacher, the playground equipment was on his mind, and second son did not seem to care about his injury at all, as if to say, "Hurry up and play.

When my second son came home and I saw his face, I was surprised, but when I saw the report from the teacher, I was reassured that it was typical of my second son.

As parents, we are still amazed by the fact that our second son is so different from our first son.