BIG BOY A great grandson of mine sat beside me as we watched the President of our a nation deliver his “State of the Union” message recently. Neither of us expected too much because those annual reports are, usually, pretty much pre-cut and dull.
That would hold for a two-year old, I'm sure but he showed interest in seeing which one of the men on the TV screen was “his President.” e really wanted to know,to, because g-grandson Dakota Fulk has a unique sense of possession, I find. He makes no distinction between that which we might call: “our”,“his,” “her” or “their” and “mine”. He put his finger tip on that figure and accepted that image as being “mine”. I has used the word “your” which ,by his system, was to be his - “mine!” henceforth into forever.
Our family is, of course, aware of this odd view of ownership rights and different members have, playfully, tried to talk him out of such ideas which adults see as a type of selfishness. It may well work out that all of us will learn a thing or two from this boy and others like him, who take pride in valid ownership and want to do the best the best they can to care for that which has been placed in their hands. That boy has already learned a lesson which usually comes to older youths – when we claim ownership, we also accept new responsibilities.
The concept he experienced and the actions he took will all, no doubt, fade away as just another example one of those oft-times silly things grandparents do. I find myself wondering what I might think if on some day in the future little Dakota sees a picture “our president” - points at it and says: “Mine!”
A.L.M. February 12, 2006 [c315wds]
