I moved my three children and myself into town after their father and I were divorced. Shortly after, the children started school. In those days, it was safe for kids to walk to school without adult protection. Mine walked several blocks to the elementary school. One day the following Spring, my youngest daughter came home from Kindergarten proudly carrying a beautiful bouquet of tulips, jonquils, and daffodils, which she presented to me with a big, happy smile. As I placed the flowers into a vase with water, I casually asked her where she found all the pretty flowers. She said, "I found them down the street." I responded, "Were they in someone's yard?" She said they were, and when further questioned, said she didn't ask anyone's permission to pick the flowers but that she wanted them for me. Very gently, I had the mother's task of explaining to this loving and well-meaning child why it was wrong to pick flowers belonging to someone else without their permission. It turned into a teachable moment, but I was saddened to see her joy in giving diminished.
Some of my artwork can be seen at www.facebook.com/portraitsbysuellenmccollim
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