His Behavior

She sat on the bench and watched the little boy play. He seemed oblivious to her. He was using the box as his dwelling. He was playing house and seemed preoccupied with the piece of fabric he was cradling in his arms. this wad of fabric was his baby. He was softly singing a lullaby. The lady did not recognize the tune. To her, he seemed to be around 5 years old. His mother came over to check on him. 'The lady said hello to her and told her that he was singing a baby to sleep. She asked his mother if he had a little brother or sister. She said no. But she did not seem too concerned that he was playing house. She seemed more concerned about the stranger observing her son. The young boy chose to ignore both women and kept rocking the baby. The lady knew this was about the age that many children chose their path. She observed the boy. He was in jeans and sneakers. A typical-looking boy. Noticing the mother watching her, she told her to have a good day and went on her way. The mother was wondering why the city had a bench here. The lady was wondering about the nurturing nature of the young boy. It was a public bench she made it a point to come back. The mother went and took the seat the lady had been occupying. The young boy left his box and went and sat in his mother's lap. She sang him the song he had been singing earlier. She said nothing about the cloth baby. After all it was part of growing up. Mothering was a role of both parents.

The next day the lady appeared on the bench again. The little boy was making a strange soup. Recognizing her from the other day he said hello. She said hello and asked what he was making. He told her that he was making a meal for his baby. The lady faintly smiled. He was such a nurturing young boy. When the mother appeared again. The lady told her he is cooking for his baby. The mother smiled, he will be a very loving father, or maybe he will be a chef. The lady did not appear as reassured. The mother asked the woman why she was there. The woman told her that originally it was for the bench. But she had grown curious about the young boy. He was playing a lot like she used to as a young girl. Why hadn't his mother bought him trucks and cowboys. Why did he want to be the caregiver instead of the breadwinner? The mother froze in shock. He is five years old she said. He had not shown an interest in trucks or cowboys. Many good hard working men are nurturing fathers. We do not have cable the mother told the lady, what he see's is me raising him. That is what he knows so that is what he imitates in his play. There are many nurturing men who have a loving wife and make a living for their family. The lady half-smiled she did not look convinced. The boys mother did not really know what the lady was implying, but she did know she did not want this woman around her son. She ordered him back to their house, and moved the box out of the yard. He would not be playing here again.

The lady returned to the bench but the young boy was never there. She honestly thought that the young

mother was just escaping reality. You can tell these things at this age.

The boy grew older and got a girlfriend. They did the typical teenage things. He no longer sang to dolls , but he did enjoy cooking. At eighteen he got a job. He did landscaping around the area. In the town was a very old lady. His mother told him to approach her to see if she needed any help. The woman recognized him immediately from her days at the bench. He showed her the same nurturing he had shown his cloth baby, and he sang as he cooked her meals. She felt a peace she hadn't felt in years. An honestly kind person. She thought back on her days on the bench. What actually about him had she been able to tell at that age. To be honest she just didn't know. It was a truth that only he would know, years after leaving his mother's home. And the lady realized she might have been wrong. It is not the sort of thing a stranger could know.