Me: “Once upon a time there was a girl named Rose. She was incredibly beautiful but was so vain.”
Toddler: “DA.”
Me: “Yes. She didn’t like it when people came up to her, even if they were going to compliment her. She always found something negative about them — their fingers too grubby, their hair too stringy…”
Toddler: *squirms*
Me: “So one day an old lady asked her for help with a heavy basket. But Rose pushed the lady away, saying she was dirty and the package would ruin her delicate hands.”
Toddler: *squirms*
Me: “Timmy! Be still. I’m trying to tell you a story. Anyway, Rose was rude to the old lady. Turns out the lady was a fairy! She told Rose, ‘You may be beautiful but you’re very impolite. Lovely to look at but nobody wants to come close to you because you hurt them. You will grow old sad and alone.’ The old lady was kind though, and she didn’t want the little girl to end up sad and alone. Instead, she turned the little vain girl into a flower.”
Toddler: “Nnnnnnnnnn.” *squirms away from me*
Me: *sigh* “That’s why the rose has thorns. It’s very pretty but when you touch it, it can hurt you!”
Toddler: *crawls away*
Me: “Did I just tell you a girl story? You don’t like stories about flowers?”
Toddler: “KA!”
Oh well. No more flower stories for the little boy.
Image credit: Natural Saturation by SantiMB.
Hi! I'm Toni Tiu,
and I've been blogging at
at Wifely Steps since 2003. This started as a blog to help newly weds adjust to married life. It has evolved into a home and parenting blog. I write about things close to my heart -- good eats, good reads, family, marriage, and the little things that make everyday happy.