I brought the boys to a park this morning as the weather was too good to be indoors. Calvin brought a toy car along while Athan had a little container and a plastic spoon to play with the sand. I have to say that Athan loves playing with sand and he likes to pour sand all over himself!! I always have to give him a bath after playing at the sand pit. Anyway, the boys were playing quite nicely at the play area by themselves for a while when a few other kids came to join them a few minutes later.
Two kids, a girl and a boy (around Athan’s age) became interested in Athan’s toys and the boy snatched the container and spoon from Athan’s hand. Athan just let him. He did want to take his toy back, but the other boy gave it to the older girl and they refused to return the container. Poor Athan, he just sat there and watched the pair played with his toys without a sound. I was nearby and did not want to interfere for I want to see how my boy would react in such situation. Then out of no where, Calvin appeared next to his brother. He went ahead and told the girl to share the toy with his brother. When the girl refused, Calvin just snatched it from her hand and returned it to Athan! And, after all that, Athan just gave it to the boy again. Kids…..
You know what? If we were at home and it was Calvin who had snatched the toy from Athan, the little one would have screamed his head off. I have always wondered if Calvin would stand up for his little brother when they are out of the home environment. Interestingly, he did. I was surprised. I did tell Calvin afterwards that he did great for watching out for his brother, but I also told him the snatching part was not nice and he should not be rough to other children. He seemed to understand. I think the boys do behave differently outside the home environment. When they are home, they are free to scream and snatch toys from each other whereas when they are out, they are more conscious of themselves and tend to be less aggressive. I hope these 2 will grow up to love each other and take care of each other. Got to pray for them.