Playdates and Friends

My son never has official playdates, he just plays at his friends house all the time.  Right now he is playing the shade with a friend that was recently mentioned in my blog. I can see them outside my window and it makes me laugh. His friend and him are rolling around on the ground acting like little boys at the feet of four other women.  The main reason these women congregate together other than for friendship is to smoke their cigarettes.  In this enlighten day of health some may be horrified if their child was playing at the feet of people smoking, but I don't care. I'm glad he has become friends with this other little boy, he is a nice quiet introvert and we barely hear him when he is playing here.  Although I don't revel in the carcinogens he might inhale, I'm not particularly worried, he is outside after all.  And I'm glad he is exposed to people who aren't the exact same as him or his parents. Although I hope he ends make similar life choices as his parents, I want him to treat everyone no matter their choices with respect.  That is the one thing I love the most about his little friend he is playing with, he is always so respectful.  He never demands like other four year olds my son plays with, he always ask, he is always polite, never yells at Nan, or anything else, he is the only one including my son that never screams while playing and usually says thank you as he is leaving. I hope his good manners will rub off on my son, I've been trying to teach him for years, and maybe some peer influence will help. Now my son is petting the dog of an older women in the circle who is extremely patient, sometimes you can see the difficultiness of her life on her face, but is always very patient with my child or any other child around who wants to pet her dog. I appreciate her kindness. That is what I like about people who haven't always made the same choices as me, a lot of time they seem to have strengths that my homogeneous society doesn't.  (I love my church, and the people who attend, but I often find my fellow worshipers rude, especially the children, and the adults not particularly friendly. Which is sad because we are suppose to be, but sometimes people forget to get off their high horse.)

In a slight different note J is about to give a talk on Sunday in church during the primary program, not a one liner, but as long of a talk as a four year old could muster.  The other day he wanted to end it early, he didn't want to go on, the length was getting to him.  I was about to conceded when his dad told him it was the most important part.  I said , daddy's right, not everyones' parents got married in the temple, so we want to teach people that is what they want to do when they grow up so they can one day be with Heavenly Father.  An enlighten oh, was his response, he hasn't complained since. But see the key with that was "want to do" not force them to do.