Birthday Celebration

Kai’s grandparents were in town so we had an early birthday celebration for him.

We were to meet them at the Lego store where Kai would get to pick out a set of his choice.

We are still working on teaching Kai to be more appreciative and less greedy. Before we left home, my wife and I spoke to Kai that he could have one set, and to not ask for any more. We reminded him that he had just gotten two Lego sets from our trip to Legoland last weekend, and he would likely be getting additional birthday presents as well.

At the store, he greeted his grandparents with hugs, and then set about the store. A Star Wars set caught his eye. That was the one he wanted, he said.

But then he saw something else, and he wanted that one, too. The Star Wars set he saw first was an expensive one. I didn’t want him asking his grandparents for more.

Kai wasn’t happy that he couldn’t have the Chima set, too. I wasn’t happy that he had already forgotten the talk we had with him.

Bubbe came over to talk to him.

She told him that if she bought everything now, she wouldn’t have anything to get him the next time she was in town. Kai pondered that for a second.

“When are you coming next?”

And that made me laugh, just a little.

I was even happier that Kai stopped making a fuss about wanting more. He finally was genuinely appreciative of the gift he received.

And when we got home, he started to work on his new set right away.

And later we had dinner together, with cake, of course.

After that, he got to open one more gift, this one a special one from his grandfather. Kai was able to guess what it was: tins! He had Mom bring the rest of his collection downstairs so he could see all of them at once.

And with that, we had a very nice birthday celebration.

My wife told Kai that she did not have grandparents, and that he is a very lucky boy to have so many grandparents.

And so he is. And not just because of presents he gets, but from all of the love they show him. That is priceless.

Greed, Patience, and a Teaching ‘Opportunity’

My son’s birthday is still over a month away, but he’s already getting excited about it. Or rather, he’s excited about the prospect of getting more presents.

You would think that with all the great gifts he just received on Christmas and Hanukkah, that there wouldn’t be anything he could possibly want for his birthday. Ah, but that would be an incorrect assumption.

His wish list is long. Basically he wants more of everything he already has, like Legos and Ugly Dolls, plus a few things he doesn’t yet have, like a molecular model set.

Frankly, the way he presents his wish list is more like a set of demands.

And so, I realize that this is an opportunity to teach him about not being greedy, appreciating the things he already has, and being patient about getting the things he wants. And when I say ‘opportunity,’ I mean endless parental frustration, of course.

I guess I shouldn’t expect that a child his age will truly understand that he will be better off in the long run for not getting everything he wants. And that waiting for good things can increase the joy when he finally does receive it. Heck, I know a bunch of adults who don’t understand those things. But I’d like my son to have some notion of being grateful for the many blessings in his life.

It’s not going to be an easy lesson to teach.

When I mention that he will not get everything that he wants, he replies, “YOU ARE SO MEAN!”

And when I tell him that the thing he so wants RIGHT NOW might come on his birthday, but not before, he will protest, “I CAN’T WAIT THAT LONG!”

Perhaps some things can’t be easily taught just by a dad’s preaching. Some things may have to be learned the hard way, through experience over time.

And that is how I will approach this.

I am anticipating a long, loud month.