Member-only story
The Art of Civil Discourse and Compromise
A Lesson from the Kids
My family had a tradition of sharing a week away at the beach in the summertime when the kids were off from school. We would all meet up and rent a house and squeeze in some family fun.
I remember one year my niece Morgan, 7 years old at the time, came into the living room where I was sitting, slammed the door, and exclaimed, “I am never playing with Amy again!”
Then she stormed off into the bedroom and slammed that door too.
I knocked.
“Can I come in?” I asked.
“OK,” was the reply.
“Morgan,” I began, “you can continue to be in a bad mood and be mad at Amy or we can go see her now and I will help the two of you work whatever this is out.”
Mediation
Morgan led me to where she and Amy had been playing in Amy’s bedroom. A year younger than Morgan, Amy was 6 years old at this time.
“Girls, let’s sort this out. Morgan, why don’t you start by telling Amy why you are upset?”
“Well, we are playing this game and Amy is not playing by the rules. When you play a game, you should play by the rules.”
