Stranger danger is a tough thing to teach a kid who lives in paradise. Well, our town isn't quite that perfect, but in the eyes of our children, everyone is approachable (and most likely knows your middle name and your business because just about every one does in a small town). So it was no wonder that my daughter came home with a piece of paper and an address from a new man in town.
"I met a man from America today!" she jumped, airborne for longer than I could say, "Didn't I ever tell you never to talk to strangers?"
The worst part was she had given him our address, too. I quickly nipped her enthusiasm in the bud by telling her to never give out her address to anyone she doesn't know. The person was obviously as excited as she was in meeting a countryman. I struggled with my own suspicion and maternal instincts.
It wasn't until weeks later that I learned the man had a daughter, who would be in my daughter's class. Suddenly, I was as overjoyed as my own child at knowing she could speak English with someone who really could!
By a chance meeting, I learned the father had lost his wife and had moved to Germany to start a new life. He ended up making lemonade in my kitchen, chatting about this or that and both of us delighting in our shared love of deviled eggs (he was promptly invited to a soirée I'm having soon!).
When I asked him how he knew Sophia, he recalled how he had greeted her over the fence at a neighbor's house. "She said 'Hello'. Not the German 'Hallo,' but 'Hello!' so I knew she must be American. And she was!"
In this case, Sophia's friendliness paid off and now we have new friends. Perhaps my kids do sense a person's good will more than I'll ever know.
