The Risk of Family

 

This summer my family decided to play the board game Risk.  Not just any Risk game, but the Star Wars version.  Instead of countries and continents to overthrow it is planets and star systems.  As with any long term board game, the best place to play is smack dab in the middle of the kitchen table.  We even took a leaf out so that the board pretty much covers the entire table.  Not to be outdone is the dining room table, which is covered by another long term project that I am beginning to think needs to drop the “long term” and become the permanent project.  So my family is now relegated to eating in the living room.  They don’t seem to mind as much as I do.  The roll their eyes and relent to my demands of towels on the floor and in their laps.  The dogs seem to think that this is their opportunity to resume the begging/salivating pose at my feet. 

Back to the game that began all this.  When we started several weeks ago, everyone carefully placed their pieces, thought of their strategies, where they were the most vulnerable, etc.  It started to be very clear that wherever Mom (me) placed a piece, the kids would instantly gravitate to this area of the board to try to block me in.  I have wonderful kids, but their ability to work together up till now has been severely lacking.  Trying to out strategize seems to be bringing them closer together, at least in the “get Mom” category. 

We began the game and it became apparent that this was indeed everyone’s strategy to “get Mom”.  I don’t know why I was chosen as the biggest threat (or the easiest to get rid of), but I seem to be on the losing end of wave after wave of invasions.  I have tried all sorts of pleadings.  With my daughter I tried to institute “Girl power!”  Nope, she was not buying it.  With my son I tried to remind him of the hours of labor, all the times I have shuttled him from place to place and have never missed a game.  That just seemed to egg him on with more vengeance.  Last, I tried to remind my husband that we have to be a united front against the tyranny of the children.  All that got was a laugh and a new invasion. 

So now I sit with just three planets!  Every time someone tries to invade me I either lose, or become even more vulnerable, just in time for the next person to take advantage of a wounded planet.  When it is finally my turn they seem to revel in the lack of planets to be counted and my meager reinforcement troops.  Oh well, soon my “race” will be annihilated and they will have to find another victim.  I’m guessing my husband.  Then it will be all out war when just the kids are left.  Or who knows, maybe my luck will change, doubt it, and I will come back stronger than ever.  Whatever the outcome I am taking in the moments to get to spend time with my family, until they start laughing at my demise again.  Just another day in my sometimes exciting, sometimes dull, but always interesting life.