Are you going to talk about me?

My wife and I were visiting with my mom and dad last night and were talking up our oldest son quite a bit. He got to show them a math test that he did particularly well on and we also talked about how he has tested out of his speech and OT services. He had every right to be talked about and we were right in holding up his hard work as something to be admired. As all of this was going on my youngest son was drawing a picture of a bunny for my mom on a small table in our family room. He asked a question that was almost drowned out in the din of our conversation that gave me pause:

"Are you going to talk about me?"

We try, very hard, to make sure that the boys feel equally valued in our eyes. If I am praying and thank God for something that the oldest has done, I make a point to mention something great about the youngest. Obviously this is a bit of a balancing act as we don't want to feed into any selfishness that may have been inherent in his question. But I do remember feeling left out at times and undervalued when my siblings were receiving a ton of attention.

All of this to say that there are no easy answers to the questions that my boys often ask. Even this one where there is a clear articulation of a need. Or is it a want? Or is it a sinful attitude?

Well, at any rate, I steered the conversation slightly toward him and he seemed to be satisfied with that. I just hope I did the right thing. I guess time will tell.

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