When our second son came home yesterday, frantically entered his room to jot something down and then told us that he had met a girl who he had promised to exchange a lollypop with, my wife and I immediately raised an eyebrow.
He had gone to his room to write a note to himself: Don't forget to give the girl a candy.
He didn't know her name nor what class she's in. He just knew that they offered to exchange a lollypop; he'd buy her one and she'd buy him another. As it turns out, she's a tenth grader, the eldest of one of his classmate's sisters.
As a joke I asked the girl what her intentions were with my son. She just laughed and told me that the lollypop exchange idea has been going on for a while now. She loves that he's nice to her and that he pops his head into her homeroom now and again with little else than a smile and wave to offer.
Our eight-year-old son has discovered that age makes no difference when it comes to finding kindness and acceptance in others. As Anne, from Anne of Green Gables would say "Kindred spirits are not so scarce as I used to think". It's so comforting to see a small child find that out for himself at such a young age.
