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Monday, April 14, 2008
The Facts About Mustard
"I don't like mustard. Some people don't like mustard; except for the people that do." T, age 3.9
Saturday, April 12, 2008
The Lecture
Yesterday SK, in tears, tells me that A told her she didn't love her. We had this discussion about words; that even if we say we're sorry, we were joking, etc. the pain is still there for the other person. We talked about different scenarios with their friends. I then related a story that circulates on email about driving nails in a fence. They listened intently, understood, and hugged each other. I thought it was a nice time.
Last night at bedtime SK proceeds to tell J the same story (about A). I walked in to hear him talking about the pain our words cause others. I said "we went through this already". SK said she tried to tell him that I'd already talked to her about it, but he started talking and she didn't want to interrupt him. Then she says "He told us basically the same thing you did, but shorter." ... Now my own child accuses me of talking too much ;)
And on that note, I'm off to clean the basement!
Here's the story I mentioned:
NAILS IN THE FENCE
There once was a little boy who had a bad temper. His Father gave him a bag of nails and told him that every time he lost his temper, he must hammer a nail into the back of the fence. The first day the boy had driven 37 nails into the fence. Over the next few weeks, as he learned to control his anger, the number of nails hammered daily gradually dwindled down. He discovered it was easier to hold his temper than to drive those nails into the fence.
Finally the day came when the boy didn't lose his temper at all. He told his father about it and the father suggested that the boy now pull out one nail for each day that he was able to hold his temper. The days passed and the young boy was finally able to tell his father that all the nails were gone. The father took his son by the hand and led him to the fence. He said, "You have done well, my son, but look at the holes in the fence. The fence will never be the same. When you say things in anger, they leave a scar just like this one. You can put a knife in a man and draw it out. It won't matter how many times you say I'm sorry, the wound is still there."
Last night at bedtime SK proceeds to tell J the same story (about A). I walked in to hear him talking about the pain our words cause others. I said "we went through this already". SK said she tried to tell him that I'd already talked to her about it, but he started talking and she didn't want to interrupt him. Then she says "He told us basically the same thing you did, but shorter." ... Now my own child accuses me of talking too much ;)
And on that note, I'm off to clean the basement!
Here's the story I mentioned:
NAILS IN THE FENCE
There once was a little boy who had a bad temper. His Father gave him a bag of nails and told him that every time he lost his temper, he must hammer a nail into the back of the fence. The first day the boy had driven 37 nails into the fence. Over the next few weeks, as he learned to control his anger, the number of nails hammered daily gradually dwindled down. He discovered it was easier to hold his temper than to drive those nails into the fence.
Finally the day came when the boy didn't lose his temper at all. He told his father about it and the father suggested that the boy now pull out one nail for each day that he was able to hold his temper. The days passed and the young boy was finally able to tell his father that all the nails were gone. The father took his son by the hand and led him to the fence. He said, "You have done well, my son, but look at the holes in the fence. The fence will never be the same. When you say things in anger, they leave a scar just like this one. You can put a knife in a man and draw it out. It won't matter how many times you say I'm sorry, the wound is still there."
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