Little Wisdom

Last night as our son was going to bed he was having trouble listening to what he was asked to do.  Being four years old this isn’t anything out of the norm.  It just so happened that with his little sister and little brother also trying to go to sleep this wasn’t the best time for him not to listen.

So he is laying in his bed laughing and carrying on as we are asking him to lay down quietly and close his eyes.  It took some time but after reminding him that if he doesn’t listen to what he is asked to do he will have a consequence, he finally came around.  I think he has a particularly challenging time listening to me, but that is for another conversation.

Afterwards I couldn’t help but play the conversation over in my mind to try and identify what I could have said that might have been more effective.  I decided that in the morning I would ask him to get his thoughts.  What followed was a priceless bit of wisdom dispensed to me by my four year old son.

After he woke up we went downstairs to get a glass of juice.  I asked him, “why do you sometimes have trouble listening to me?”  He said, “because when you’re talking to me you sound angry.”  “If you talk to me in a normal voice and not a grumpy voice that will be better.”

I stood in front of him humbled by such wise words. 

Thank you little man.