What’s the Rush?

At this point we all need some time out to calm our mind. Except for last night, I have not slept much since Sunday. I need time to figure out the way forward. Spending the next four days and nights together is not going to resolve the situation. Since the kid is already feeling uncomfortable around our kids, why do we want to put him through it?

All I am suggesting is that we need some time off. Give the kid a chance to build his confident and feel comfortable. At the same time, we need the time to talk to our kids about bullying. I was bullied from fifth grade and throughout middle school. I was called “Ching chong” and all the racist Asian terms out there. I was pushed and shoved for standing up for myself. I never brought it up to my mom because I afraid it would hurt her. One time I got punched, fought back, and got suspended; therefore, I could not hide it from her. I did not know that fighting back could also cause me a three-day suspension. I cried during the three days and my grades dropped drastically at the end of that quarter. After that incident, I made a promised to myself that I will not let them beat me academically even if they could beat me physically.

From my own first-hand experience of being bullied, I thought I understood bullying. I would hate to see my kids turning into bullies; therefore, I still need to find the line for bullying. Is saying “If you don’t say ‘wow’ to our baby then we won’t say ‘wow’ to your baby” considered bullying? Is that statement worth crying out loud? Do the parents need to step in to defend that? All these issues needed to be worked out.

I am not trying to avoid the situation. They are cousins and I can’t separate them forever. From summer vacation to family reunion, there will be plenty of time for them to be together. Now is not the time. Everyone is too emotional. I am writing this blog post means that I am too. I don’t want to spend four days and nights watching the kids’ every move to make sure that our kids won’t make the other kid upset and to make sure that the parents aren’t jumping at the kids’ throat. Why putting everyone through misery?

I proposed that we treat it like playdates. One or two hours a week until the kid feel comfortable again. I don’t see that as avoiding the problem.