Stealth Mode

Eddie has always been a little on the shy side. We never know which way it will go -- he will either randomly greet strangers with a "HI!" or a "POO!" or he will go into what we have dubbed "Stealth Mode."

When he was younger and strangers would talk to him, he would often burst into tears and make me hold him. Then one day, the three of us were at the fabric store. I was waiting in line to check out and Dave was following Eddie around the store. That's when he encountered "Overly Friendly Old Man." This old man didn't just talk to Eddie. He stooped down in front of him, talked to him, and even touched him. I would have intervened, but we knew that within moments, the screaming would start. We were surprised when Eddie didn't start crying or run to one of us to be held. Instead, Eddie went into Stealth Mode.

When Eddie goes into Stealth Mode, he holds perfectly still. He gets a very serious look on his face, as if he's concentrating on being invisible. He doesn't move or talk, but will just stand or sit there, head turned slightly to one side, staring at nothing. It cracks me up because he does this quite often now. I often find myself explaining to friendly strangers why he is suddenly silently frozen. Then he'll wait until we're walking away before shouting something like, "KNEE!"

Dramatization