The "Golden" Rule

Cody and Cordelia have had a tough couple of weeks getting along. Cody vacillates between being outright mean and impatient and being incredibly loving, making a true effort to work with what he's got. Cordelia, being, well, one, is not yet a model of patience and manners, and doesn't quite understand the rules of the road. Often, when she grabs something, he'll say (in quiet desperation), "CorDELia...I was playing with that...you may have a turn when I'm done! What about this thing? Want to play with this other thing? It's so interesting!"

Other times he yanks, kicks, or yells. Ever so slightly less civilized, though understandable. (And she generally laughs maniacally no matter what he does.) So we've been working on the Golden Rule. It's hard to express sometimes; he'll say, "You should treat other people the way...you..want you...to treat them?" He's mostly got it. Except when he doesn't. Yesterday, she grabbed something, he grabbed back, she went to bite him, and he bellowed, "CorDELia! If you bite me I will bite you back!" When I asked him to think about what the Lord would encourage him to do in that situation, he replied, "Jesus says you should do to other people what they do to you! That is the Golden Rule!"

We made sure to go to Mass this morning.

He spent lots of time by "his" Jesus statue, which was surrounded by those garish plastic rosaries with which he is so taken (and which, before too long, he actually had taken). He knelt down sweetly and hollered a Hail Mary and Our Father for the whole parish to hear (at least it was before Mass). Then:

Cody: Jesus, is it okay if I borrow your rosary beads for awhile?

Cody/Jesus: Oh, absolutely, Cody, it would be my pleasure for you to borrow them.

Cody: Thanks Jesus! Mom! Jesus said I can borrow his rosary! Wasn't that so kind of him to do that?

A few minutes later he came back to the pew and said, "Jesus told me I should keep track of all the rosaries. So I stashed them all in my church pants." Sure enough, his pockets were bulging with beads. We talked a little about the Golden Rule after Mass, and I told him he should talk to Mary about the Cordelia situation, because she understands little boys so well, and she also understands what it's like to have a little life thrust on you suddenly. A life that cries and won't listen to reason, and generally upends your life as you have always known it. And is there to stay. And how that can be hard, and often really, really frustrating. So he went up to the Mary statue and said, "Mary, I love you. You look so beautiful! Do you think you could help me with my sister? Could you please help me with my patience?"

Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us. : )