Why It's Probably Best We Don't Homeschool

Caleb loves the Star Spangled Banner. He used to sing it all of the time. Lately, he's taken to writing it down on his Magnadoodle, erasing it, and starting all over again. A while back, we got a book out from the library detailing the history of the flag flown over Ft. McHenry, the same flag that inspired the National Anthem. Whenever we passed a large flag at a car dealership or a town hall, Caleb wanted to know if that was the flag from the song. We explained over and over again that it was not, that the McHenry flag was now locked away in a museum.

Now it’s a running joke. Whenever we pass any flag, he jokingly asks if that’s the flag from the war.

I think John has become tired of this running joke.

Last Sunday, on the way to Caleb’s piano recital, we passed a Red Lobster donning the American flag. True to form, Caleb asked, “Is that the flag they flew in the war?”

“Yes,” said John. “That’s the flag we flew in Germany after we defeated the Germans.” (Caleb contemplates this.)

“Is that a German Restaurant?” (His logic always astounds me.)

“Yes. We fly the American flag over German restaurants so that they remember we won the war and don’t cause any more trouble.”

Caleb, silent, accepts this as fact.

The saddest part of this story is that I did not interject with the truth.

Caleb hasn’t asked us about any Rochester-area flags since then. He’s probably contemplating the wide prevalence of German cuisine in our city. When he does ask again, I think we’ll tell him all car dealerships are run by the British.