EV's letter on prams

Dear Uncle Jeremy,

Can I call you Uncle? Mummy says that it’s important to be courteous and polite, and being a nice girl, I think it goes without saying that I call you Uncle, even though you may not be of ‘uncle’ age.

Mummy was a little upset today when she got home. I gave her hug and asked her why. She said she read an article, where the writer lamented about how parents’ overuse of prams is a social ill. Mummy says you wrote something about how prams are getting really huge and taking too much space in lifts, how prams end up carrying shopping bags instead of cute toddlers like me, or babies. That writer is you Uncle Jeremy. You’ve made mummy upset. You are a very naughty boy.

I don’t know what ‘social ill’ means, but I can sense that it’s not something good. And based on what mummy said, her friends aren’t too happy about what you wrote either. You’ve made mummy and her mummy/daddy friends upset. Very very very naughty, Uncle Jeremy.

Uncle Jeremy, you are not a daddy yet right? So it’s hard for you to understand.

1. Prams, or strollers, are getting bigger. In fact, my pram, which I share with my di di, is a McLaren. Despite its name, it bears no connection to the F1 team. And it’s rather small compared to some others that I’ve seen. But it’s sturdy, easy for Mummy to keep and carry, and most importantly, I can sleep comfortably in it. Don’t parents get prams/strollers for those reasons, no matter how big or small they are?

2. I’m a toddler, I can walk, but I still love my pram. Nothing stops me from sitting or sleeping in my pram when we go out, except of course, di di. Because being a good jie jie, I have to let him sit on the pram, as he gets tired more easily than me. Sometimes though, I just don’t want to let him have it, so we fight, and give mummy and daddy a big headache.

3. Sitting on the pram can get quite hot, you know Uncle Jeremy? I’m sure your body also gets really tired when you sit for too long. I know my mummy does. So do we, you know? So we get out and walk or skip merrily beside the pram. So mummy puts her bags on the pram. Have you tried pushing a pram, and looking after kids and carrying bags at the same time? It’s not easy, you know?

4. Prams are comfortable to sleep in, but nothing is more comfortable than being carried by mummy or daddy. And when di di or I want to be carried, I assure you, we can kick quite a terrible fuss, that will make the whole world stare at us. What should mummy and daddy do? Leave us in the pram while we scream till the roof drops, or carry us so we can settle down and fall asleep, even if the pram is empty? Which would you choose?

5. Mummy always teaches me about being kind, sensitive and respectful of others, to always think of others. Your article, which generalises and assumes that all parents with prams behave in a certain way, tells me that you are not being very nice. That is very disappointing.

I don’t understand why you say children nowadays don’t walk. We do, heaps of it. We walk, run, hop, and have limitless superhuman energy, that mummy and daddy always surrender. Our mission in life is to make mummy and daddy collapse before we do, and have fun doing it. But we do get tired, you know. When that happens, if we are not at home, it’s the arms or pram to the rescue.

Of course, Uncle Jeremy, you are not yet a parent, so you cannot understand how hard it is for mummies and daddies. But please, at least be nice to them. And….

Wait till you become a daddy. *cheeky grin*

Always having fun with prams,

EV

PS: You might be glad to know that when mummy brings me for my music class, she doesn't bring the pram. We take the train and walk.

On a rather crowded MRT. Mummy tries to park the pram as close to
the pole as possible, so we cause minimum inconvenience to other people.

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