Paper moon, paper heartlyrics by James Taylor
Pink balloon, work of art
Al Capone, Bugs Moran
Valentine's Day
Bootleg gin, porkpie hat
Dew Drop Inn, dirty rat
Through the heart, Cupid's dart
Valentine's Day
I found myself musing yesterday as Lauren went through her much coveted bag of little paper notes, lots of random plastic toys, and two heart-shaped lollipops about another mom desperate to stamp out this contraband - there is no candy allowed at school. As Lauren withdrew the two lollies from her bag, and asked if she and her sister could have them, like the sticky confection my own heart melted a little to see Lindsay tickled expression that her sister was giving her one of her special treats.
It puts me in an untenable situation as a parent, faced to decide between their health and their happiness, she once said.
I don't mean to say I think she is wrong. We all do our best to decide what's best for our kids. I think when it is only about health versus happiness, we have no trouble confiscating the offending thing. Right? Because that's a lot of the job - to make the difficult, often times unpopular decisions...
2 comments:
I don't think a candy treat on a holiday is a question of health vs. happiness. Of course there should be limits to the sugary goodness but candy in moderation isn't going to kill anyone who's not diabetic. I also happen to think that banning something entirely only makes a kid want it more.
So true about banning something entirely will make a kid want it more. Lauren is so good about asking first...what a sweety.
Post a Comment