Now this is parenting done right.
Sharing is caring, right? But does that mean you need to share your stuff with every single person you meet? Well, according to Alanya Kolberg, you don’t – and she is absolutely spot on.
The American mum took to Facebook following an incident in the playground which saw her son, Carson, become overwhelmed when six strange boys came up and asked if they could play with his toys.
“As soon as we walked in the park, Carson was approached by at least 6 boys, all at once demanding that he share his transformer, Minecraft figure, and truck,” Alanya wrote.
“He was visibly overwhelmed and clutched them to his chest as the boys reached for them. He looked at me.”
Obviously, wanting to protect her son, the mum told him to say no... which did not go down well with the other parents.
“Of course, as soon as he said no, the boys ran to tattle to me that he was not sharing. I said, ‘He doesn't have to share with you. He said no. If he wants to share, he will.’
“That got me some dirty looks from other parents. Here is the thing though:
“If I, an adult, walked into the park eating a sandwich, am I required to share my sandwich with strangers in the park? No!"
“Would any well-mannered adult, a stranger, reach out to help themselves to my sandwich, and get huffy if I pulled it away? No again."
“So really, while you're giving me dirty looks, presumably thinking my son and I are rude, whose manners are lacking here?
“The person reluctant to give his 3 toys away to 6 strangers, or the 6 strangers demanding to be given something that doesn't belong to them, even when the owner is obviously uncomfortable?”
Quite rightly, Alanya said that while her son was not obligated to let others play with his possessions, it did not mean he didn’t know how to share. In fact, as she went on to explain, he did intend to share them: with his mum’s friend’s daughter.
"In any case, Carson only brought the toys to share with my friend's little girl, who we were meeting at the park. He only didn't want to share with the greedy boys because he was excited to surprise her with them.
"The next time your snowflake runs to you, upset that another child isn't sharing, please remember that we don't live in a world where it's conducive to give up everything you have to anyone just because they said so, and I'm not going to teach my kid that that's the way it works."
