The Bad Taste

Two summers ago while camping at the beach my daughter got a very bad taste in her mouth. She was five years old and it was time to bundle up in the tent for bed. I had given each child a glow stick in case they were uneasy in the dark as it was our first camping adventure. 

I was getting situated in my sleeping bag when I noticed an odd, blurry glow in the sleeping bag next to me.

"Ellie?"

"Yes, Mama?"

"Do you have something you want to tell me?"

"No, Mama," came her little voice in the darkness.

"Are you sure?" I coaxed her.

"Yes, I am pretty sure."

Every word that my daughter spoke was illuminated by the liquid from the glow stick smeared across her lips, chin, and nose.

"Ellie?"
 
"Yes, Mama?"

"Did you bite your glow stick?"

Silence.

"Ellie?"

"Yes, Mama?"

"Did it taste bad?"

A brief silence was followed by a flood of tears. 

"Mama! It tastes so bad!"

Fortunately - or maybe not - we had already run this round with my son about two years prior so I knew the liquid in the glow stick was not toxic. When my son realized she had in fact chomped on her glow stick he shot upright in his sleeping bag to get a look at the glowing lips of his sister. She wailed and he laughed. I tried to keep the order while laughing myself.

To this day my daughter remembers how bad glow sticks taste. But, I do feel lucky that glow stick goo is about the worst thing she has tasted so far. Well, at least the worst that I know about!