The New Trash Jewelry

A couple of years ago our oldest daughter had a wrist band placed around her wrist at the Hot Rocking 4th of July festival. Little did we know at the time that it was the first of many more to come. We celebrated the 4th and then we went on home. Sometime later; maybe in September and quite possibly October, we heard her let out a shrill shriek and the whimpering sound of "NNNOOOOOoooo."

"What?" I asked her.

"My BAND!" She cried.

"Your what?"

"MY BAND!" She whimpered again.

"Okay." I said, pointing two fingers at my eyes and then her eyes and then back at my eyes. And willing her to focus I said, "What are you talking about?"

"My wristband from the 4th of July. It broke."

She held up a thin piece of string that somewhat resemble the nylon cord that gets wrapped around a bale of hay. Only this was gray and stringy and gray. As I got a better look at it, I could tell it was actually just a piece of trash. Inside my head I was doing the math and asking myself questions. That was like three months ago I thought. My daughter has been wearing trash on her hand for almost three months now. How did I miss seeing that? And what was that other thing on her wrist? Is that more trash!

"Dude," I pointed at her hand, "What's on your wrist?"

"That's from roller skating." She replied with a smile.

"Why are you wearing this...this...this stuff on your hand?"

"It's cool." She informed me.

Immediately we went head to head about taking off the trash, but she informed me that these unique pieces of string were getting washed everyday. She took very good care of them and they were washed every time she took a bath. The only thing I could think of was what if she cut her wrist somehow. She could get gangrene from these things.

And then finally she said, "Mom, knows."

I then looked at her mom and shook my head. Holding both of my hands out in front of me palms up, I gave her a gesture that said, "WTH?"

"Yeah," Mom said, "About that...she has been washing them."

Even her school teachers were aware of her newly found jewelry. Sometime this past year her music teacher asked her what she was wearing. Jenifer just held up her hand and showed her the different bands that she had on. Her teacher asked, "Is this like...something religious?"

"Uhh...sure." Jeni offered, and then walked away.

I think the only religious thing about them is she never takes them off.