Up Close and Personal

I am going back in time, once again, and pulling up some memories from years passed. We have been watching home videos the last few weeks, and I guess it has gotten me somewhat nostalgic of when the boy was a bit younger.

Since the boy was very young, his FAVORITE animal was the alligator. He was fascinated by them. To him they weren’t what most people think they are, scary and vicious, he just thought they were pretty cool! Florida ended up being a great choice for the young gator guy!

It was March 2006. The boy had just turned five and we were off to Florida. We loaded up the rented van with friends, the oldest niece, and away we went.

We had been to Gatorland before when the boy was two. I don’t think he stopped smiling once! But this time, he was a few years older so he got to experience it in a different way. Instead of watching alligators from afar, he had a hands on experience.

Now looking back, I must have been overcome by all of the smiles, happiness, and amusement park influences. I must have been overtaken with the excitement of the day, because alligators are, after all, scary and vicious, right?! So, what kind of a mom lets her boy sit on one?

Well, I did. I gave in to the pressure of a five year old, and I let the boy sit on an alligator. In fact, I may have encouraged it. It wasn’t just me either, my guy was okay with this as well. We paid our money and then happily watched – cameras in hand- as the boy walked up to a REAL LIVE alligator, sat down, and smiled. And we weren’t the only ones under the influence of Gatorland, there was a line of people who had paid their money and waited to put their children on the back of an alligator. The only thing holding that mouth shut was what appeared to be a thin piece of black electrical tape. And this was all for the sake of amusement!

The boy enjoyed every minute of it! Come to think of it, so did we! He may have even asked to do it again, but once was enough for that day. He knows now, of course, that alligators aren’t a creature to mess with and I think he even knew then. But when you are at Gatorland, five years old, and there are alligators to sit on, why not get up close and personal!