Scene: 6:15 a.m. My bedroom. I am asleep. My three-year-old child enters from the bathroom. CHILD (stage whisper): Mommy! ME: …What? CHILD: Know why I didn’t flush? ME: …Why? CHILD: So it wouldn’t wake you up. He goes back to bed. Fin. Mollie Wilson O’Reilly is editor-at-large and columnist at Commonweal. Also by this author Travel Advisory Get Commonweal’s latest, delivered twice weekly. Email address Recommended for you The Importance of Being a Burden By Cathleen Kaveny July 30, 2026 Imitation of Life By Dorothy Fortenberry August 5, 2026 ‘They Don’t Want to Say Yes’ By Phyllis Zagano July 28, 2026
