Editor:
I am a grandmother and I would like to share a situation that occurred on the last day of elementary school.
I was waiting for the bell to ring for the children to go to their classrooms, when a child approached my grandson with some food shaped into a cupcake.
I asked the boy about the food and where he got it.
He pointed over to the park that was next to the school. In the park there was a party being had for dogs.
I said to the boy that it didn't look like a human cupcake but an animal one. He didn't agree with me, so I asked him to talk to his mom. He told me he had come on the school bus and his mom wasn't there.
So I asked him if an adult had given it to him. He said no, that it was on a tray, and he pointed to other boys that were eating it. He ended up throwing it away.
My concern is this: We tell our children not to follow strangers or to take food from them. Yet do we take the time to reason with our children about situations that may occur with their friends? Do we help our children to understand why saying no to their friend can be the safe thing for them to do?
Summer is here so let us do all we can to keep our children safe.
A. Knox
