This, would be, the MOST important thing you will ever have in life, the lesson, a child learned, from her own actions, translated…
As school started, the school started getting the model students, the healthiest students from each class elected. My granddaughter’s class reduced the number of model student candidates down to just two. And, the healthiest child, only my granddaughter fitted (no myopia, no cavities, weight and height, within the perfect range), and so, there’s, no competition, she’d, won the spot.
My granddaughter qualified for both, the teacher wanted her to choose only one.
“Grandma, I want to be the model student, I want to be the healthiest child too, what do I do?”, she’d, told me, with great difficulty.
like this??? Photo from online
“If you can only have one, what would you be?”, in her young mind, she had, yet to understand, that people can’t have it both ways.
“Then, I want to be a model student.” She’d said, affirmatively. Instinctively believed, that it’s better, to be a model student.
She’d, paused for a bit, and thought of how her best friend of the class, Pei-Pei was nominated as the model student this year too for the very first time.
“But, if I’m model student, Pei-Pei wouldn’t have the spot.”, she’d become, hesitant now.
“You were elected the model student back in the first grade, this year, you can be the healthiest child, and, give Pei-Pei the slot of being the best student, that would be, a win-win situation, wouldn’t it?”, I’d, attempted to persuade her, hoping, that she could gain the correct values, of not calculating everything in life, to fear losing, or getting taken advantage of. Teaching must cover ALL five areas, learning to get a long with others, being courteous to others, unselfish, giving others more, it’d made you, personable. This is, a good virtue to have.
Two days later, my granddaughter called me up, told me, “Grandma, mommy said being awarded the healthiest child is harder, so, I will, be going with Pei-Pei, to receive the awards!” ahhhhh, my daughter-in-law is, quite wise.
a person with a kind heartimage found online
There are, many things in life, that are, hard to weigh, other than beating others, surpassing other people, you must be able to, open your hearts, to let others in, to have that sense of empathy, of compassion, tolerance, then, you shall have, a good heart, if you have, all of the above.
And so, this parent allowed her own young, to weigh in the pros and cons, and, the child decided, that she would, give up the title of being the most outstanding student academically, so her good friend can, have a turn, and, through this, she’d learned, to be compassionate toward others, and she’d, gained empathy from thinking from her best friend’s perspectives, if her best friend didn’t win, how it would, make her feel bad.
Life, the Obstacle Course 