Is No Negative?

My son and I were in the car today on the way home from physical therapy and a quick stop at the grocery store to get toilet paper (the total came to over $44!!??). Out of the blue he said to me, "Mom, if parents always told kids yes, they would never know what's right and what's wrong."

"Yes," I said a bit surprised, then a quick check of his logic before I replied, "I guess you're right." Hopefully, I concealed my wonderment.

"Yeah," he went on [in his I'm in character voice], "Mom, can I smoke?"

"Sure honey." [in his mom voice]

"Then, 18 years later he has lung cancer," [normal son/narrator voice]
"Mom! Why didn't you tell me no?" [in character voice]

From the mouth of babes (or eight year olds).

Apparently, his class had seen a "No Smoking" cartoon the day before in school-- but to leap from don't smoke, to his kernel of wisdom has me impressed. I'm also taking note of how he phrased his thought. It was from the positive angle, "... if parents always said yes," not the negative. Had I wanted to pass on wisdom of this sort, I know I certainly would've said it differently.

My son got me thinking and he's right-- how can our children know right from wrong if we always give them what they want? And, why not look at my no's positively for a change?

Pondering the wisdom of a child,
k8t

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