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‘Tis the season for pranks

3 min read

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Sometimes I think my son is trying to give me a heart attack.

He has been quite the prankster for some time now, years really. He has always enjoyed hiding behind doors and jumping out at people when they enter the room, unaware of his presence. It was far cuter when he was far smaller, but now that he is the size of a grown man, it can be quite scary.

And to him, quite funny. He laughs robustly every time I scream.

On occasion, he has set up pranks so far in advance that he has forgotten he has done it until I call him out on it. For instance, I recently ran out of ibuprofen in the bottle in the kitchen and went into the medicine chest in the bathroom closet to grab some more. When I opened the bottle in there, instead of a safety seal and a ball of cotton, a rubber spider peered back at me. I nearly threw the pills in the air from the surprise.

He enjoyed that one immensely.

“I did that one a long time ago, Mom,” he said. “I forgot it was in there.”

I wonder if he aspires to be like the man who has been scaring his wife for over six years while filming her reactions. She (@shanityfair) recently shared clips of the footage on TikTok, screams and terrified faces included.

Fortunately, my son doesn’t have a phone yet, so he can’t quite achieve that, if it is his goal. And sometimes he accidentally gives me a little warning that something is coming, unlike the savage sneak attacks of the videographer husband.

For example, I know my son is planning some shocks for me this Christmas season. I came home the other night to discover that he had completely decorated the house while I was at work. I was both pleasantly surprised and slightly overwhelmed by the job that he did. Every room has lights strung, there are trees up in at least two locations, and Santa Clauses and snowmen abound. It is a bit much for me due to the construction mess we are also enduring while we continue to remodel, but I’m so grateful to see him excited that I can’t help but smile. (I will be ready for it to go away Jan. 2.)

At any rate, he let it slip while I was walking through his self-proclaimed “Christmas wonderland” that he had strategically placed snowmen and Santas where they would “surprise” me all season long. That likely means I’ll be casually opening a cupboard or closet door later this month – or, more realistically, in January – and a stuffed, wooden, resin or cardboard remnant of the season will pop out at me.

It won’t even matter if he’s not home when I find it. Chances are good that I will scream, and when I hand it to him later to take back to the basement for the year, he’ll cackle with glee that his plan worked and that I was scared by his prank.

Regardless, I guess our Christmas season will be extended into the New Year, and my reactions to his pranks will be a gift that keeps on giving. For my son at least.

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