AFRICAN AMERICAN DAD

Dev: Daddy, do you know what Michael [not his real name] said to the teacher when she asked him to put his toys away?

Dad: No, what did he say.

Dev: Let me tell you in your ear.

Dad: We’re the only ones here, so just say it.

Dev: I’ll write it down.

Since he decided to write it down in yellow crayon I couldn’t read it.

Dad: C’mon Dev just spit it out, I can’t read that.

Dev: He said NO! Now he has to sit out at recess for five minutes tomorrow.

Dad: How do you feel about him getting into trouble?

He ponders my question for a few moments. I, as always, was looking for a teaching opportunity. I wanted to share with him a golden nugget of daddy wisdom after he responded. Then…

Dev: Well, I think it’s good. He doesn’t play with me that much anyway.

I smiled and went back to what I was doing. Some things just are what they are, and there is no lesson to be learned.