The Devils Tears

So, the other day, I was out and about with one of my kiddos and we stopped for lunch.  He asked if he could try the new Bacon Habanero Quarter Pounder and I said okay.  We got it to go and little later, I look back and his face is red.  He was literally burning up from the hot factor.  I stopped and got him a milk and it helped quiet it down.  There was a TON of hot sauce on the burger.  Well played, McD's worker...well played!

As he was choking, I said to him, "Are you okay?"  And his reply, "I think this is made with the Devil's Tears."  This caused me to nearly choke from laughing.  It is amazing what our kids say to us.  I sometimes think if I wrote it all down, I would have a best-seller!

But sometimes, the things they say are not quite as cute.  On the flip side, another one of my kiddos had spent the previous evening with other family members.  When he came in the next morning, he told me he had a funny story to tell me.  He proceeded to tell me a story about a large woman, who was not very nicely dressed, who came into the restaurant they were eating at and how the adults he was with were making fun of her.  He is laughing hysterically as he conveys the stories to me and as my smile fades, he realizes something is wrong.  He tells me they were laughing until they were crying.  I guess these are the Devil's Tears too?

I ask him, "Why is that funny?"  And he sat there and said, "I guess it isn't".  He then said that, for once, one of these family members, who really picks on my son, didn't pick on him and acted like he liked him for laughing along.

I sat there, looking at his sweet face, saddened by what he was telling me.  This child is a very sweet child.  He has a kind heart and is the kid that always wants to make someone feel better.  But he betrayed who was to make another adult in his life happy.

It is a lesson we try to teach our kids, to be strong and not succumb to peer pressure.  But what do you do when it isn't a peer, but a person who should be a role model and be in a position of authority?  The child looks to the adult around them for behavior cues.  It is confusing when those adults are mean-spirited and immature.

In the end, he understands why it was wrong and I understand why he did it.  It was a lesson for us both.  He is still my sweet child and I believe his heart is good and even though these influences are there, he will grow into the amazing man I know he will be.

I guess maybe there are many kinds of Devil's Tears.