It is a girl thing

I was amazed when I heard darling three year old Kayla say, "Get off, Jack. I don't want you to fall." Five year old Jack said, "Alright," and climbed off the step ladder. Kayla quickly climbed on it. I laughed and asked if she was afraid of falling off. No, she said, she could hold on like this. Jack would never come up with a compassionate reason to tell somoeone to get off somehting. He is only capable of saying get off, I want on it, it's my turn.

I have found that females are more uncomfortable than males in blatantly going after what they want and expressing their own needs. The female's default position in some situations is to go about filling their needs in a round about way rather than directly asking for what they want and need. After witnessing this amazing scene, I am convinced that women are hardwired genetically to choose compassion and filling the needs of others before their own in certain situations. Society may play a part in shaping women this way, but so does biology, for sure!

Later today: Ok, my sample size of one boy and one girl is too small to make generalized statements about all men and all women. Erica just told me that Zane, her six year old boy would say something like Kayla did to get Jack off the ladder. Then again, Zane is socially advanced for his age and gifted. He is a ring leader of children, as evidenced by his ability to direct games and groups of children to play together and follow him in imaginative play. Most adults can't get six kids ages 4, 5 and 6 to rally together and play the same thing for even thirty minutes. I watched him involve five other kids in play for four hours yesterday in a park setting and in a backyard.