Too much bang for 2-year-old

My little 2-year-old, Braden, did not like the fireworks this Fourth of July season.
Sleeping through them last year, Braden was ready for them this year. So we thought.
All day long, after promising he could stay up later than normal to watch the fireworks, Braden spent the entire day saying “See fireworks. Boom.”
My wife and I warned him they may be a little loud. They make a “boom” noise, we said, which he obviously understood.
Loud noises do not bother the kid. He eats, breathes and lives for fire trucks, ambulances and police cars and their sirens. I am convinced he will become a rescue worker when he grows up, just to have his own siren.
Braden’s also good at making his own loud noises. As much as it makes me chuckle inside, it can be quite embarrassing when he tests out his vocal limitations in a quiet, populated place like a church or library.
For those of you who roll their eyes at loud kids like him, just remember you probably did the same thing when you were his age. You just don’t remember doing it. Ask your parents. They’ll tell you. My mother has pointed out many times that she didn’t attend church for several years because I was louder than the preacher. She was convinced I would eventually become one because of this early start.
Although I am not a preacher today, like my son I continue to be loud. I prefer to think of myself as being vocally boisterous. I’m quick to express any opinion I have, no matter if it is uninformed and clearly wrong. And since I make sure everyone hears it, I oftentimes end up sounding like the crazy guy in the room. Every room has to have one, so it may as well be me.
After this year’s fireworks, we may have scared Braden into becoming the crazy guy.
Shortly before the fireworks started, sitting outside on a blanket, Braden, who was getting tired after a long day of playing, thought he was supposed to go to sleep. “Night, night” he said, lying down on the blanket.
I knew right then he would not enjoy the fireworks. In a déjà vu moment, I flashed back to early memories I had, hating fireworks because they were too loud, especially when tired.
To absolutely no surprise, Braden started crying as soon as the fireworks started. “Home” he cried.
We tried to point out the fireworks were harmless. They looked like big flowers in the sky and they were loud like sirens, we told him.
We thought we had convinced him at one point when it appeared as if he were laughing, but then we realized he was really crying very hard.
Not wanting to subject him to something that frightened him, we packed our blanket, put Braden in the wagon and walked home. He stopped crying, but he refused to look back at the fireworks, even from a distance where they were more pretty than loud.
The next afternoon during his daily nap, Braden had his first nightmare in more than a year. Crying while still sleeping, he kept saying “no fireworks.”
The funny thing is he also talks about them when he’s not sleeping. But then it’s on a more positive note. He tells us he wants to see some fireworks.We tell him sure, when someone invents silent dark fireworks for daytime use. Now that’s a million dollar idea. Or maybe I’m just crazy.