Parenthood

The other day my son asked me if I could buy a book for his friend the next time we went shopping. I was curious about the reason. He explained that his classmate asked my son for a book in exchange for his friendship.

I listened and gave him some advice.  I told my son that friendship is not something you could buy; it's more than just things (toys, books in his case).  It should be about feelings, emotions you get from playing with a person, the support you get from a friend or shared common interests. And the fact that his classmate wanted something material from him even before friendship started wasn't a good thing. I suggested that he should talk to his classmate and try to explain that if he really wanted to be his friend he shouldn't ask for such things unless it's his birthday.

The next day I asked my son whether he got a chance to work it out. He said that he talked to his classmate and told him that friendship is not about buying, he also told if his classmate wanted to be his friend they could play and have fun together but he isn't going to buy him anything in return.