I just read a beautiful post by a fantastic blogger and writer at Going Another Way. Her title for the post was Love and she talked a lot about compromise, but what I took away from it was her message of knowing who you are and what you want. I think it is a useful concept one could (or perhaps should?) apply to any aspect of one’s life!
We all know how important it is to instill good values in our children. As responsible parents we strive to teach things like good manners, empathy and honesty, and we are thrilled when our kids start to grasp these concepts. Sort of.
At dinner the other night our daughter thanked me for making the meal, something I felt was exceedingly polite and showed real understanding of the effort I put into it. I was quite touched by the sentiment, until she sweetly clarified:
“It was really good except for the flavor.”
Oh dear.
“Excuse me. Excuse me.”
My daughter is quietly and respectfully trying to get the attention of her daycamp instructor. I smile proudly. My daughter is so polite.
“I’m bored.”
And honest, too.
When it comes to teaching manners, most parents struggle with the question: is there such thing as too much honesty?
I say “yes.” White lies are fine, fudging the truth a bit here and there is OK, and lies of omission to spare someone’s feelings are all perfectly acceptable in my book.
And living vicariously through the honesty of a five-year-old?
Fine by me.
