My daughter's temper...

My daughter has been asked about the phrase in her name. She wrote a short explanation, but she has asked me to write the whole story for her, since I remember it much better.

One of the scariest things that ever happened to my family occurred when my children were younger. We used to go to my grandmother’s house to do laundry every weekend. I would help her with my aunt, and baby-sit her while she went to church. She also had somebody come in 2-3 times a week to give her daughter baths. We got there one time when the nurse had just gotten there. Since she had been the same person for months, we all knew her fairly well. Unfortunately, that meant my kids knew that she carried candy too. As soon as they saw her, they wanted to know if they could have some candy. They had eaten lunch so I agreed.

This time she had run out of most of her treats so she only had butterscotch pieces of hard candy in her bag. The kids went into the TV room to play, while we talked a little more before she got started. Next thing I knew, my son was trying to get my attention because something was wrong with his little sister. It was like a nightmare for me, because she was choking on the piece of candy. Fortunately, I didn’t have to try to remember my first aid, since the nurse got to her first, and proceeded to do the things necessary until the candy went flying across the room. Melissa came crying to me, and I thanked the nurse for taking care of it. She admitted feeling guilty since she gave her the candy, but I told her that she had saved her and that meant the world to me. I didn’t understand why my daughter was upset watching all of this, but when I went back to check on her again, she just looked at me, hugged me, and told me she was fine.

I would soon find out that my daughter was very confused herself…

After the nurse finished with my aunt, she was talking to my grandmother about the supplies she would need to order for my aunt. As they started down the hallway, I saw my daughter, with a VERY determined and angry look on her face marching over to block the doorway to the dining room. Just as they reached the doorway and looked down at her, Melissa proceeded to plant her feet (I knew we were in for some kind of trouble, she always got fierce when she was angry), put her fists on her hips, and then pointed an accusing finger at the nurse and shout, “ YOU HIT ME!” For about a minute or two, none of us moved, and then it sank in that she was mad because the nurse had hit her back while trying to get her to expel the candy! She thought we had all lost our minds because we had thanked this woman for hitting her when she was scared and choking. Needless to say, she was the most indignant, and enraged (a sight you still don’t want to see on my daughter!) 4 year old on the planet.

We all ended up in tears as we tried to explain to my sunshine that the lady was trying to save her life. The nurse ended up apologizing before she would even listen to us.

So now you know why my daughter is

Melissa *YOU HIT ME* W.