I recall a couple of years ago when Chip and I were at the beach for the Thanksgiving holidays. We were waiting at a restaurant (loooooooong wait) and there were families there with children. One little girl was getting particularly restless and started running all over jumping onto different couches, etc. Another girl who seemed a couple years older went to the restless one and said, "Would you like to play checkers with me?" (The restaurant has game tables in the waiting room, right beside the chairs and couches.) She sat with the smaller girl and set up the checkerboard, patiently explaining how to play and distracting the little one. Shortly the little one's family was called and the older child went back to sit with her parents.
Later I saw the older child's parents in the restaurant, and I went over to them and told them how impressed I was at the child's manners and her ability to calm the smaller child. The daughter smiled at me and the mother beamed and said, "Why thank you! But she does have her moments …" I said, "Today she had some very good moments."
And I must add that a teenage boy held the door open for me at Outback the other night. When I thanked him, he said, "You're welcome, ma'am." Wow.
There is hope for humanity.
