August 3, 2005 - Wednesday
Harry and Jeremy, but mostly Harry, were running around the lobby yesterday at the music school while I was filling out their paperwork. I told each several times that they needed to be patient and quiet and that it was not an appropriate place for running and making a lot of noise. Jeremy ultimately settled down, but not Harry. Worse, the running included the now all-too-common imaginary gun play.

OK, I remember doing the same thing as a kid and I know that it's inevitable that Harry and Jeremy will pretend to play with guns, or in their current case, Star Wars blasters. Ultimately, there's nothing I'm going to do to stop them. In fact, I'm fulling ready in a few more months or years to buy Harry a BB gun or something and teach him how to use it. I think making something like that taboo is dangerous because it only puts it out of parental oversight. And, like chopping wood, and I think thye best approach is teaching seroiusness, responsibility, and proper safety.

Still, I do insist that there is a time and a place for everything and the lobby of the music school is not the place for imaginary guns and pretending to shoot and other students. On this point today, I was very inflexible and Harry's refusal to listen earned him a time out and a stony trip home.


Comments, Opinions?