Manners, Kid-Style

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When I stopped at the gas station the other day to get the kids a snack, there was a “little person” working the counter – is that the preferred term these days for someone with dwarfism?  I certainly don’t want to insult anyone, so pardon my ignorance…

So anyway, I decided to give my kids a talk about why it’s not polite to stare at people; I was especially targeting my almost-5-year-old since she is very curious about people and the differences in the way people look, that sort of thing – and she’s not very discreet about her curiosity.  So I was explaining to her about why we shouldn’t stare at people, and she had a sincere question:  Is it ok to stare at broccoli?

I told my husband this story when we got home, and he was wondering if she was joking, but no, her tone was indeed sincere.  My eldest daughter and I laughed when she asked it, but not AT her, we only thought it was cute and silly.  But like I told my husband, I really don’t think she was trying to be silly.  Like us, my husband knows by now that Samantha is a very unique individual, and she just has strange questions sometimes.  She was more than a handful as a two-year-old, but the further away we get from that stage in her life, the more we can enjoy her very individualistic personality and free spirit!

SAMMIE

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3 thoughts on “Manners, Kid-Style”

  1. I’m not sure if you can stare at broccoli, I’ve heard it’s not easy being green. 😉

    Interesting question for the situation. I had a couple of kids like that. They sometimes got their parents in tough/embarrassing situations.

  2. I just bought some broccoli after staring at the frozen vegetables for a short time. I mean, at the grocery store- not a cold day in a special-ed room. 😉

    I also had a class yesterday with an 8th-grade girl with dwarfism. I didn’t give her any more of a look than the others in the class- a step up from the occurrence with the albino boy a couple months ago when I had to say something to him after catching myself staring (only for a few seconds). It’s a natural thing to do when we see something for the first time. I’m not sure why our culture takes offense to this, but we do.

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