An Eye for an Eye

"Is that a fight upstairs?" Matt called to me as I cleared the lunch dishes today.

"I'll go check," Naomi volunteered, running up the stairs. She returned a moment later to report, "Toby hit Emma."

I called the acused in for questioning and he didn't deny his guilt, so I probed further, "And why did you hit her, Toby?"

"Because she hit me," he replied.

"Well, why did she hit you?"

"Because I was pushing her."

"And why were you pushing her?" I pressed growing more confused.

"Because she hit me."

Fearing we were going in circles I gave up on the interrogation and simply doled out the consequences for hitting--no matter the cause. I doubt either of them remembers what started the fight anyway. The problem with "An eye for an eye" is that no child would make it to adulthood without being blind.