Are you my son?

As Sam and I conversed one morning, Mich eagerly awaited a chance to slot in a word, but his dad was still in mid sentence, so out of frustration he said “But daddy, you don’t have to use all your words at once”, that cracked me up.

Anyway, we begin the 3rd week of school and the adjustment process is uphill. Our regular morning wars to get out of bed;- Mich crying about his dream being cut short or how he is still tired, then we face the concept of adding a helper to the equation.
I have been mopping the floors, burning my dress in the kitchen and making sure he has washed behind his ears, so Mich doesn’t understand why someone else has to do these chores for me, (apparently I was getting good grades). He views the helper as an intruder and is always telling on her or giving the instructions. I have over heard commands like “Apolot, you need to wash my clothes”, “Apolot! Apolot! That is not the way they clean the bathroom”. All over a sudden he is extremely authoritative. He is harsh at times, I hate to think he has learned this from me.
He insists on bathing himself and isn’t comfortable with other people seeing him naked. I’m happy with his zest to bathe but half the time he comes out with wet hands and dirty feet. I've assumed the position of referee because “Apolot is not listening to me”. I don’t know where the bad blood is coming from.

Recently he prayed that his teachers would learn to tell time well because they ask the kids to get back to class before they are done playing and playing is his favorite activity.
One other time I went to pick him up but he wasn’t with the rest, he was in class reading a book - that didn’t sit right. Getting down to the details;- he was attempting a cart wheel when one of the girls laughed at him. Without hesitation and steaming like a hot potato, he punched her in the stomach and refused to apologize, so he was sent back to class. I was upset. When did all this violence begin? He has never so much as pushed anyone. I thought I was raising a boy who discussed issues and certainly not with the fist.
You would assume that all the time we’ve spent together would give off some good dividends - a marked difference between him and the other kids because he is being raised by his mom (who constantly laboring to bring the best out of him). It’s extremely embarrassing when ugly traits rear their heads at the least expected moments; right in public where everyone turns to see who is responsible for this lad. It’s hard to convince anyone that he was taught otherwise and it makes me wonder what’s going to pop up next. I think I have sorted out an issue and then it resurfaces in a new form.