Growing up

Growing up...you think it's easy? I'm beginning my 7th decade and I can absolutely tell you, it's not!  Now let's look at just the first 5 years.  If an adult's brain collected and learned all that a three year old learns in those 36 months, it would burn itself out... I know, we all know people who did just that and it wasn't from intellectual intake.  All of a five year olds core values are learned in those 60 months. Speaking, walking, singing, dancing, manners (hopefully), respect, anger management, values, reading, writing, coloring and even love....unconditional love for most.  It would seem those things would come easily... wrong!  I guess it depends on the teacher (and I don't mean just the school teacher.)  Here's my latest example... and of course the five year old is Bailee.  Children are taught early that it's not really a good thing to tattle. Nobody likes a tattle tale!  In Bailee's classroom they have a dog, I believe....(not sure whether it's stuffed or paper or plastic but he lives in the corner of their room and his main purpose is to allow the students to get little things off their little chests....to tattle, if need be without bothering the teacher, the aide or the other students.  I guess the gist of the story was a classmate of B's was hitting her (not knockout punches but annoying ones.) B didn't tattle, at least to a human but she and her Mom were summoned to the Principal's office (hear the Law and Order sound affects?).  He explained to Bailee that no one should ever hit her and if it happens, she should tell her teacher, her Mom or him!.............Well, "wait a minute" this little 5 year old brain thinks.. "for 5 years I've been taught not to tattle...  The explanation came that if it's a matter of safety for you or others, you should tell someone.  This makes perfect sense to my 60 year old brain but a tad confusing for 60 month ones!!! So whoever coined the phrase Growing Pains must have known that the mental ones were going to be as tough as the physical ones.... Nothing is easy..even growing up!