Shhh....

A few weeks ago when I brought lunch to M on his tennis day, he invited a classmate R to sit with us. I have met R a few times and paid special attention to him because I know M considers him as one of his good friends.

After a few minutes of casual chatting about school work and his hobbies, I sat back and just observed the boys communicate. Throughout lunch, the boys joked and laughed and every now and again, I injected some humour of my own which I soon realized they really appreciated. 

Then out of the blue, R looked at me with a hint of envy (at least I thought that was what I saw) in his eyes and told me his parents aren't such loving people (in his exact words). All they do is quarrel and shout at each other all day long. 

They don't kiss me or tell me 'I love you' . They are always arguing about something. They don't talk to me in this sweet, sweet way (he was referring to the way I talked to M). 

In that instant, I felt awful for him. I tried to console him with suggestions such as how some adults may just banter or talk loudly when they are in disagreement. He wasn't the least bit convinced. 

The incident is a good reminder that we should always be mindful of our conduct at home, especially in the presence (and within earshot) of our little ones. 

I was tempted enough to quiz my boys days after of their impression of their folks' relationship. 

According to them, their parents rarely quarrel (of course we did, but we were usually discreet) and are quite loving towards each other.