The three P's

One day this summer, as our daughter was changing out of her beach gear, and into her summer clothes, she poked her head out of the door, and rather franticly waved at me to come in.  Then she closed the door.  I finished what I was doing, and silently slipped through the door.  She was huddled in a corner of her bed, looking down, and clearly distressed.

I gently touched her shoulder.  “What’s going on?” I casually asked, although my heart was racing, and my brain was pondering: What now?

“We-ellllllll,” she slowly stammered. . . . “I might be pregnant,” she fearfully squeaked, and covered her face with her hands.

“Oh??” I queried, with a bemused smile. “Really,” I mockingly asked, “how do you think this happened?”

“Well, in grade six, my teacher said that if you missed your period …. maybe one or two times – well - you could be pregnant,” she sputtered.

Now I had to hold back the laughter that was forming, as my naive daughter was clearly distressed.  “Oh, I see,” I said in a matter of fact tone, “do you remember anything else that your teacher might have said?”

“NOOOO!” she wailed, falling backwards onto the bed, clutching her knees to her chest.

“Well, there is one more detail that the teacher would have taught you.” I paused, she glanced up at me, “When did you last have sex?” I asked her.

She sat bolt upright and implored, “MOM!!  SEX!! I didn’t do the sex!”

“Oh, honey, I know that,” I sat on the bed beside her. “You see, the thing is – you can’t get pregnant if you didn’t do the sex” I calmed her.

“Really?” she asked. “Well what about my period?”

“Remember when you are still young, and puberty is just starting in your body, your period doesn’t always happen in a regular pattern?” I explained.

“Oh,….. so I ‘m not pregnant?” she wondered.

“No, you are not pregnant.” I assured her.

“Okay.  Thanks Mom,” She calmly said - and sauntered out of the room.