My Capricorn Moon Tries to Get Dylan Down for a Nap

Anyone who knows anything about Capricorn already knows what I’m going to write. It’s impossible to convince a cute, kissing, hyper toddler that he should go down for a nap just because one has a plan for how the day should unfold.

I spent all morning working on getting Dylan to sleep. He didn’t sleep well last night and he was grumpy from the moment he awoke. He, in fact, dropped my IPhone in the toilet to get the ball rolling.

I tried taking him on a walk. I tried lying down with him in bed. I tried holding him and singing to him. All the while I was thinking about everything I needed to get done, to accomplish, to catch up with–in short, everything I had PLANNED to do once he slept.

He wasn’t having any of it. In fact, every time I even got near the computer, he lunged at my leg and screamed. (I think the whole morning was a not-so-subtle message that he was sick of technology). In any case, I finally had a small epiphany as we were lounging on the bed.  And it was this:  My Capricorn moon — the part of me that wants order, achievement and constant progress just isn’t going to stand a chance in the face of a bubbling toddler asking to play with the horsey puppet. In fact, he was doing everything in his power to remind me that my Capricorn moon isn’t necessarily the way to live my life with any kind of pleasure of joy.

As I looked at him beaming at me, I realized his entire existence is a gigantic reminder that I could play my way through life just as well as I could work my way through. And strangely I suspect we’d get to the same summit. It’s just that I would be way more miserable along the way. And Dylan would be kicking up his heals, eating pizza and doing somersaults.

I had a mini moment of surrender right then. My whole body just said, “Okay! Okay! I’ll PLAY. I’ll Plaaaaaaaaay!”

I could hear the sputtering of my little dutiful Capricorn moon child. And I needed to assure her that there would be a time and a place for her need to work. But I could SEE my little bright boy kissing my one cheek and then the other and then the first again, giggling all the while. And I thought, “Now really, isn’t this lovely. For goodness sake, just chill out.”

And I did.

And that is the end of the story of the grumpy Capricorn moon and Little Boy Blue.