Kindred,
Yesterday, I had this conversation with a ten year old kid.
The kid said, "I got only eleven Valentine's Day cards."
Silence.
"Out of thirty."
Hmm.
"When ____ passed by with candy, ___ skipped me."
Silence.
"On purpose, because I stopped ____ and asked."
I mumbled something here. What to say?
Maybe try, "Did you give ___ your Valentine's Day candy for her?"
The kid said, "Yes, I gave to everyone."
"Good," I said, "then you did not do anything wrong. ____ is the one being mean."
But the kid stopped listening, still too hurt to hear.
"What's the meaning of Valentine's Day? " I tried.
But the kid did not want to talk anymore.
Should Valentine's Day be about causing hurt feelings?
Should it be about using candy to be mean and bully?
The Meaning of Valentine's Day
