Tony's parents will employ a walk-away tactic to deal with the boy when he is reluctant to leave a place. Sometimes, picking up Tony doesn't work because he will kick and flail away at his parents. The parents then will say "good bye!" to him and walk away. The tactic is effective if the parent doesn't look back. Tony will scream and not move at first, but at a point, the prospect of separation forces him to reluctantly run and catch up with his parents. This tactic is usually employed in shopping centers and playgrounds.
Tony has learned to use this tactic on his father.
One day, Dad wanted to take Tony into a small shop to buy a cold drink. Tony, contrary to his normal desires, didn't want to go in. For whatever reason, he was dead set on he and his father making their way quickly to a bus stop so they could both go to his favorite playground. Dad was carrying Tony on his shoulders. He tried to get his son on the ground, but Tony resisted by clasping his knees to his father's neck. Dad eventually pried Tony off and put him on the ground. As he was put down, Tony put his head and legs back, but eventually settled so that he was standing on the ground. He said "no!" to his father, and walked away in the direction of the bus stop. Ten meters from his father, who stood aghast in front of the shop entrance, Tony turned around to see if his father was following him.
Tony, like his father, couldn't resist the urge to turn around to see if the tactic was working. Unlike Tony when his father turned around to see if Tony was coming, his father ran to catch up to Tony. Turn about was fair play.
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