My child is playing downstairs.
I need them to put pants on so that we can go to a doctor’s appointment.
I ask them.
I ask again.
They ignore me.
Finally I get their attention.

And they immediately stub a toe.
Or fall down.
Or bump their head.
Or suffer some other catastrophe.

And it feels like a delay tactic.

I’m driving.
Another adult is in the passenger seat.
They try to tell me to make a turn that I’m not prepared to make.
I miss the turn because it is not safe for me to make it by the time they tell me to.
What would happen?
I might crash.

My child is not conveniently injuring themselves to avoid listening.
My child is involved in a task.
Maybe not the task that I want them to be involved in.
Maybe not a task that I assigned to them.
But they are involved in a task.
It has their attention.

I am asking them to make a turn that they are not prepared to make.
And sometimes I am demanding that they make it RIGHT NOW.