Does The Time Fit The Crime?

Now that I’m a parent I am beginning to understand some of the decisions my parents made when I was younger. I all too often pull out my “jump-to-conclusions mat” and assign a punishment to Jude before truly assessing the situation.

In Season 2 of The Middle, Axl leaves his dirty smelly socks lying around the house one too many times, Mike punished his son by banning him from playing his basketball team’s final game. Given the Heck legacy on the basketball team, I think the punishment may have been a little harsh for the crime. 

Parents are human and make mistakes even if it’s just an overreaction. This reminds me of a story about Joe when he was a teenager. One evening he came home after curfew and his dad was there to greet him with a “talk” about adhering to curfew. Mid-conversation his dad fell asleep so Joe left. Later his dad woke up, didn’t realize he had been sleeping, and reprimanded Joe for walking away during their conversation. I think Joe explain what happened and his dad apologized. It’s a funny story now but at the time I’m sure he didn’t like getting in trouble because his dad fell asleep. 

Have you ever been given a time that didn’t fit the crime?