HATE

Last night over dinner, Taylor was telling me who he plays with on the playground at school when he suddenly said "We hate C (one of his friends at school)." I was immediately taken aback for a couple reasons - One, I wondered where he had learned the word "hate" and Two, I was shocked to hear such a strong word coming from my sweet baby's mouth. I stared at him for a second or two without saying a word and Taylor started crying almost as soon as the words had left his mouth. We then explored his feelings more...turns out Camillo has been shaking the bridge that Taylor and Marcus like to play on at the playground. T and M have apparently asked C repeatedly not do it, that they do not like that, but C does not stop. Which apparently led to the "hate' declaration. We talked about "hate" and I explained what it really means and that he does not really hate C because C is his friend. He just did not like his friend's actions at that time. He calmed down and seemed to be okay with it all in the end.

What struck me about this whole exchange is the true impact of hating. We have all heard it before - that it takes more out of the person doing the hating than the person who is being hated. Which is why it's such a powerful word/emotion and one that should not be taken lightly. Taylor's reaction last night was proof of that argument. When he let the word "hate" slip from his mouth, the emotions that followed were immediate and real and overwhelming...which led to tears. He was truly feeling the impact of that word. It made me sad for him but I hope it taught him an important lesson too. It certainly reminded me of the power of that word and emotion, when I witnessed it as a parent. Not a fun moment.