Memory Monday: Fence Wars

It started out as a typical summer day: my sisters and I throwing ourselves around on the swingset, having a good old time, when...

Something suspicious.
A random little boy is in the Yegermanjensens' yard. (We later learned he was a cousin).

As I swung up and down, I caught glimpses of him walking around their backyard with a stick. He looked kind of bored, and as I was going through my "Who could ever not like me" phase, I thought we should be friendly and say hi.

As I proposed the idea, Karissa thought I was crazy. "No. You don't want to do that."
"Why not?" I asked optimistically.
"I don't know. Just don't."
"Oh, let's be friendly!" I chirped as birds perched on my outstretched arms. I think a deer bounded into our yard, too...

So I enthusiastically popped my head up over their fence.
"Hi! My name is Kaylee!" 

In retrospect, maybe my friendliness was taken the wrong way. Maybe he didn't want some random buck-tooth girl beaming at him over the fence while he was reflecting the meaning of life with his trusty walking stick. 

Because then he was all, "Boys are better than girls." 

Without wiping off my flight attendant smile, I replied, "No, they're both equal." 

Then, something unexpected happened: For the first time, I witnessed a human being snap. Fury latched onto his face and drove him to the pear tree by the fence. He roared "BOYS ARE BETTER THAN GIRLS!" and then proceeded to chuck pears at us. 

And then things got stranger. 

The boy's 13 year old sister walked outside. Normally, this would be the part where she witnesses her bratty little brother throwing fruit at strangers' craniums and cries, "Brother! Whatever are you doing? Cease this madness immediately!" 

Nope. Instead she sprayed us with the hose. 

Then she tried to dump a bucket of water on our heads.

It fell in sheets down our fence and mingled with the dirt below. We, the pacifists that we were, just stood there perplexed at the whole ordeal as our oppressors' cackles traveled into the summer heat.

...But eventually they got bored and went inside.
Karissa had her moment of "I told you so," and I indignantly felt my efforts at friendliness wasted.

Maybe he would've been friendlier if I brought him a sandwich... :P