Differing Personalities

Oh, these boys are so very different, and I worry about both of them.

We went to the library the other night to meet with some people about the Tooele Arts Festival. We hung out in the play area since one brought her little girl. There were some kids there when we arrived, and the boys got busy playing with the puppets and toys.

Peanut immediately presented his three trains to one of the kids, a girl of six years. He had her playing with him within ten minutes. Meatball, on the other hand, played by himself for a few minutes. I encouraged him to play with the other kids. He doesn’t really like trains, but he tolerates them for Peanut. At the library, he had a lot of puppets to play with and didn’t have to play trains. He eventually ended up playing with one of the other girls who was about two and a half. He even struggled a bit with that.

They are just so different. Peanut could make friends with a chair if he needed to. Meatball keeps more to himself and hesitates to approach others. They are a lot like Bub and I. She can talk to anyone at any time. I do not approach strangers; I do not strike up conversations just to be nice. She has a jillion friends (or can make them at the drop of a hat). I have a few close friends, and that’s it. I think that the boys are going to be somewhat like us.

I’m not sure if I should be afraid for either of them or not. As a small child in today’s world, it’s definitely NOT good to be too friendly, especially with adults or strangers. We talk to Peanut frequently about the dangers (in an age appropriate way, of course), but it’s just how he is. And, I THINK I can see a wistful look on Meatball’s face when his brother makes friends so quickly, and I know how that feels. It’s hard to be introverted, but I can’t make him be something that is his not.

[Sigh…]