Boyhood Friends

Two years ago Jeremy became fast friends with a boy who lives close to us. They played together nearly everyday after school, and often spent the night at one or the other’s house on weekends. They were joined at the hip.

Last school year Jeremy and his friend were in different classes, but still played at recess and after school. That all came to a screeching halt one day. They had a nasty argument at school. You are probably thinking it is over some trivial matter like sports that boys often get into rifts over. Not these two boys. This clash was over schoolwork.

Jeremy had read more books than the other boy. Kids at school get rewards for reading books. The other boy is VERY competitive and told Jeremy he may have read more books, but HE had a higher reading level. Jeremy decided that he wasn’t going to stand for the unjustness of this comment. The boys quit speaking to each other.

Now this didn’t work out at all well for the boy’s mother and me. We often use each other for childcare. Naturally, we didn’t want to give this up. So, after months of strife, the boys have again established a relationship, albeit a tenuous one. (Mostly because it is summer and they have only each other to play with!)
Now the start of a new school year is quickly approaching. (Nine days, eleven and one-half hours, not that I’m counting!) What will happen, I wonder, if they are in the same class and Jeremy gets a better grade than he does? Oh, joy!