Feb 7, 2013

A (Shockingly) Nice Little Story

So, at the kids' school, they have school shirts, and coats, and different things you can buy.

They also have water bottles, with the school name printed on them.  But they're not really for sale.  Usually you get one by WINNING THEM.


At the end of each month, there is a school spirit assembly.  Awards are handed out to kids who have embodied the good "character trait of the month," and sometimes there's a draw for some small prizes...

...like a school water bottle.








And recently, girlie came out of school all excited, because they drew her name, and she won a prize.

That's great, right?!?








But, there's only one small catch:  the person who has yearned for a water bottle, dreamed of a water bottle, talked all the time about a water bottle, hoped for a water bottle, wished for a water bottle more than anyone else in the whole world...


...is her brother.







Believe you me--we've had a LOT of talks about FREAKING WATER BOTTLES, and what "draws" are, and how do you win in a draw and oh man...let's just say for the past two school years, we've talked about it A LOT.



But the little guy didn't win.  I knew how much and how long he'd wanted that stupid water bottle.


And it wasn't like he was a tantrum-y jerk about it, or freaked out, or had a melt-down about it or anything, so that you could say something motherly like; "OH BIG DEAL! NOBODY WINS ALL THE TIME. YOU SHOULD BE HAPPY FOR YOUR SISTER."

  No; he was just quietly pitiful after school, as he sat by the computer to draw his pictures.


Just quiet and sad.  Even worse.














But...


















That was one of the nicest things ever.





Whoo! That was boring.


35 comments:

  1. ahhhh just when we think our kids are the devils spawn{like this morning}they actually do something nice for each other!

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    Replies
    1. yes Paula! They also redeem themselves every night by being adorable while asleep.

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  2. AHHH...my eyes are tearing up a little! Very sweet!

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  3. Don't choke me up. I haven't finished eating yet!

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  4. Not boring...just super sweet!
    www.rsrue.blogspot.com

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  5. OMG so not boring. I love it. I love the pictures, I love the story and I love the way you told it. I have a new blog-find to follow - YOU. Because this is just plain awesome.
    PS I especially enjoyed the picture of you tearing up at the end. Perfect.

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    1. thanks very much Kristi! I'm glad we found each other too.

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  6. So sweet! And seriously...you have to get rid of the "woo that was boring" bit. But your posts never are.

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    1. what--you don't like a little shtick?!? Okay, fair enough :)

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    2. I love a little shtick! And I'm self-deprecating to a fault. But I'm also a big fan of story structure. I just found that it broke the flow of the post a bit and didn't do the stories justice as a last line. (God, sorry to be such a boring, smug know-it-all. But I really do like your posts better without it!)

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    3. It's all good :) Thanks for the advice, Stephanie!

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  7. What a sweetheart!! This is great, a lovely story and AWESOME drawings! Xxx

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  8. Oh wow! That is happy ending to the story :) I love your pictures, your blog is so cool. You've got talent!

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    Replies
    1. thank you Meredith, I appreciate you stopping by and your kind words as well!

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  9. She has a kind, gentle and loving heart. What a special child she is to have given up something she had wanted..... sibling love is so cool. xox



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    1. She sure does, Diane! Yes, it's so much better than when they're FIGHTING.

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  10. What a lovely story!
    And I agree, cut that last line, Woo, that was boring. It's enough to say it in the title. Don't undercut yourself.

    And keep up that good Mom work.

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    1. Alright Jeanne, because I love you and trust your vast wisdom (and editor know-how), I have dropped it from the blog.

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  11. New reader, found you on Twitter. What a sweet story! At last year's state fair, my daughter brought her own money to pay for a $6 bungee ride, and then decided at the last minute to buy her little brother one, too. My husband had to restrain me from saying, "Oh, my gosh! That was so sweet, so sweet that WE'RE going to buy the tickets for both of you!!! YAY!!!" He said, "Don't steal her thunder. She gets more out of it this way." SO true.

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    1. I would have been the same as you: wanting to reward both of them for being kind! That was ALSO a lovely story. It must be a feel-good weekend! Hooray!

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  12. So not boring! I love those moments when you see that they really are human. They happen less and less as the spawn turn into teenagers.

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    1. ooo...that's scary, Lisa, because they don't happen all that often anyway!

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  13. Well, I thought it was boring.
    JOKING! I actually said "ahhhhhh!" out loud! And you know what a terrible old cynic I am.
    Give those kids a little extra cuddle from me please. xxxxx

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    1. Are you more cynical than I am, Curtise? If so, let's get married and live happily ever after.

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  14. First, what a touching story. And it was not boring at all.

    Second, I am such a dummy. I've been wondering what happened to you,and you're here! No more Ow my angst?

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    1. Hi Vesta! I was getting disgruntled with my other blog, so I'm taking a hiatus from it. I'll probably be back there though. You're the first person to care out loud about it, sniff!

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  15. Yay for big sisters!!! What a champion. xxxxx

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    1. Well, she's the little sister, but she definitely seems like the big sister sometimes!!!

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  16. Replies
    1. I'm glad! I'd better get off my ass and start drawing again then :)

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