Twister

My parents rehab bank-owned properties for a living.  Basically they go in after the residents have left, assess the place, and then hire the subcontractors to do most of the work.  Some of it they do themselves.  Mom occasionally calls me with her leftover findings (like a gently used casserole dish or a high quality garden hose). This past week, my mother texted me inquiring about our family's board game collection.
"Chutes and Ladders?"
"Uno?"
"Twister?"

I recounted how one of our family friends brought over Twister a few months ago, and although I got roped into being the designated spinner, it was more fun than I expected from a plastic sheet and a cardboard spin wheel.

"Twister, for sure" I concluded.

When I saw her, she gave me the latest bag of goodies from her abandoned property.  This go round we were handed a spiral bound horse riding reference book, disposable K-Cup coffee pods and Twister for the kids. I thanked her for it and set it on the backseat of my car.

When my daughter got in the car that evening, she was excited about the book but more excited to own a new game for the nights we play as a family.  We do weekly game nights of Uno, Apples to Apples, Sorry and Monopoly (if we can manage not to get bored of it).  Twister would fit right in.

She picked up the box off the backseat and slid the lid off..... and then she gasped.  For in the Twister box was not the game at all.  It was rather, a collection of things that (perhaps) this couple did while they played Twister. It revealed to E her first images of pornography by way of a porno dvd cover. The front read something about "Underage Virgins" and showed some topless schoolgirl-looking whores.  The back, the side that was revealed to her before I snatched it away, was a collage of sexual acts: cock-sucking, doggie style, cum shots.  This was not suitable material. I secretly wished she had opened the box and seen the front cover instead....because topless sluts are only mildly disturbing in comparison.

By the time she had gasped and exclaimed "What is this? Who does this?" I had already wrestled it away from her.  Wrestled is a strong word. She gladly handed it to me, perhaps knowing this was not appropriate for her.

"I cannot unsee that" she exclaimed afterwards.

I was mortified.  Actually, it was a dash of that with a sad little bit of nervous laughing.  Explaining what porn is to a 10-year-old is challenging.  I rambled off something about people being into some interesting things to which others might find disgusting.  We were driving down the interstate joking about it in a forced effort to make light of a very awkward situation.  We (the adults) took a photo of the cover to send to my mom.

We texted her about how Twister had some questionable material in it.
"No way" she texted.
"Yes way" we texted back.

We sent her the cover photo and she was devastated. I think she was afraid I'd be upset or wouldn't want to talk to her.

 I couldn't be mad at my mom.  She's very careful about what she says and I perceive her as one of the most prim and proper thinking people.  I reminded her that we all understand she didn't purposely do anything.  I did rib her a little bit by saying, "it's a plastic sheet and a cardboard spinner. Didn't you feel the heft to this box?"

Needless to say, she won't be handing us any unopened boxes ever again.  E managed to sleep through the night despite such raunchy images dancing in her head.  She hasn't said a word about it since.  That's how I was as a young girl.  Let it go. Let it be.  Unfortunately that stuff will still visually leave an impression all too early on a young mind.  My heart sank a little knowing that had happened.