Green

Thursday morning.

Slowly, she emerges from her bedroom, stumbling down the stairs to the kitchen where I am busy making breakfast and preparing the school bags.

"Good morning, Joy"

She mumbles something.

"Start getting dressed, love, I put your clean clothes on the sofa here. I'll be right with you to help you." She takes the small pile of clothes, consisting of pants, sweater, socks, underpants and a t-shirt and puts the t-shirt and underpants aside.

"the clean underwear too, Joy"

A deep frown, she grumbles.

"Is something wrong?"

Silence.

Then: "I don't want to wear this t-shirt. Nor these underpants."

Sigh. Owdear. I'm barely awake, my brain still running in slow motion, but still I am expected to find out what exactly is wrong with the underwear. To ask her directly is not gonna work I fear, but I try anyhow.

"What's wrong with this underwear?"

An angry face, more frowning, and then a response that tells me nothing. "I don't want to wear it".

Think, Kit. What are you overlooking here?

"Sweetheart.. I have cut out all the labels so those can't bother you. I have washed it already, so it doesn't smell like the store anymore and it feels nice and soft. It is wonderful, brand new, soft cotton, I really don't see anything wrong with it".

She looks at me as if I am a total idiot.

"I want to wear this t-shirt, the one I am wearing now, or the other one that is exactly the same".

"Girl.. you've been wearing this one for 2 days now, and the other one is still in the hamper. I bought you new underwear because you always wear those 2 sets only, and I simply can't always wash them in time. And again.. there is nothing wrong with this underwear".

Once more she shakes her head, giving me this "you're so stupid" look. "It's green".

For a split second, I am speechless. Then, I erupt. "But the t-shirt and underpants you are wearing now are green, too!!"

"That is a different type of green".

"On the contrary, it's the exact same green, it just hasn't been washed as many times, it's new but trust me, it's exactly the same type of green".

She puts it back on the sofa as if it's some sort of dirty dead animal and scampers off to the walk in closet.

"What are you going to do?"

"Fetch new underwear"

It's now very late and there is no way we are going to make it to school in time. I decide to stop arguing with her, for now.

When she returns with a set of underwear she apparently does want to wear, I once more have to sigh deeply.

"Joy.. this T-shirt is very old and way too short, and those underpants have a hole in them."

She shrugs. "I want to wear those".

Despair, pure and utter despair and so I try again, even though I should know better. "But.. why????"

She shakes her head and smirks at me. "Mom.... THIS underwear.. is not green!"