Boys on Friendship

I was lying on the sleeping bag and pillow, the ones my boys leave out for the 'designated reader' at bedtime.  Although everything was late tonight, including bedtime, they both asked if I would come up and keep reading Wonder by R.J. Palacio.  When ten and eleven year old boys ask mom to come read a really good book, it is hard to resist.

We just reached a place in the book where the true character of one of the boys in the book really becomes apparent, before I stopped reading.  One of my own boys began to talk about how if he had to choose a good friendship over being popular he would choose the good friendship.  I talked about how I could see where the character was coming from at first, because in real life sometimes it can be harder to see things while they are happening and then we realize man, that was dumb, or look what I am missing. . .

Then my youngest agreed in an unexpected way.  He talked about a boy he was in class with the year before and how he thought they were friends.  When the other boy said things like, "Give me a pencil or I won't be your friend." my guy said, "I did all kinds of things for him, because I thought he really was my friend all this time, then he punched me and that was it.  He wasn't really my friend."

In that moment I was struck by how the right books can really open important conversations with our kids.  Conversations that can otherwise feel canned or static only for the sake of having them, can become truthful and important.  So greatful to fabulous authors. . .