Before a Play Date, the Question

Before a Play Date, the Question October 8, 2015

Dede Donahue:

It was the most awkward and divisive of questions that I would ask of other parents, usually new acquaintances, but also of old friends. We’d be on the phone, discussing our young children, laughing, and the subject of play dates would come up. The other mom might say, “Can Chloe come over here tomorrow to play with Maddie?” I would ask, “Do you keep guns in your house?”

Always it would lead to the most illuminating of answers, whether yes or no. If the response was negative, the parent would answer immediately, following up with something like, “No, never. We don’t believe in having firearms.” In the other cases, there would always be a pause preceded a simple, “”Yes.” I would follow up, “Do you have a gun safe?” Usually, then came the “No.”


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