Godless Mom in the Bible Belt

Have you ever met someone who immediately felt like a dear old friend, or someone whom you instantly dislike?

Two years ago a couple moved into the house two doors down from us. I was thrilled when I learned that they have two young daughters, the oldest is now six and the youngest is four, just two months younger than my Liz. I thought it would be so wonderful for Liz to have a playmate so close to her age living nearby!

Well, the family is wonderful and we have become good friends. They are they type of people you know you can count on in a pinch and they are always good for a laugh. The weird thing though? Liz and the youngest daughter do not get along at all!

Liz has a myriad of friends with whom she plays very well, and the same thing can be said of our little neighbor. Neither girl is at fault, they are both sweet tempered and intelligent, they both love to play. Yet for some reason these two are like oil and water. They both make the attempt, one will approach the other and for a few minutes everything is fine. Then, one will disagree with the other over some trivial thing and all hell breaks loose.

They do better together if they are on neutral ground but even then their play is good for ten minutes at best. When there are other neighborhood children present, they both go their separate ways and never even look at each other. I think it is safe to assume that they could go the rest of their lives without ever seeing each other again and neither one would care.

Yesterday on the news I saw a report regarding the changes that occur in the brain when you fall in love. It was an interesting scientific look at those intense feelings we experience at the beginning of a romantic relationship. I can't help but wonder if the whole personal chemistry thing extends further than the obvious love emotions and into our everyday interactions. Is there some sort of basic chemical/biological reason Liz and the girl next door just don't click or am I overlooking something more basic and obvious as the cause of their dysfunction?

Hmmm, they haven't ripped each other's heads off yet. Perhaps I worry for naught.