What We're Reading Now

What William Knows Part II

24 November 2015

Allison asked her eight-year old nephew, William, for more life advice. (They started this tradition last Thanksgiving, and they’ve decided to do it every year for as long as William feels he still has something to say.)

Tags: allison read, lego lessons, what william knows

Last year, I asked my youngest nephew William if he had any advice for my readers. In less than 10 minutes, his seven-year old self came up with these words of wisdom. Yesterday, I asked him if he had any additional thoughts after another year of life experience, and here’s what he wants you to know:

• If you’re having a hard time falling asleep, try to think of a cartoon or TV show you like. Then change the story just a little bit in your mind to make up something new and before you know it, you’ll start to get tired and then it will be morning.
• If you’re having trouble reading a really big word, try to break the word up into smaller words that you already know how to read. This is a good thing to do in the rest of your life, too. Try to make hard things easier by breaking them into smaller projects.
• If you’re feeling sad, go to your room, put your face in your pillow and cry so you can just let it all out.
• If you’re feeling angry or stressed out, go to your room, get out your plastic baseball bat and hit the bed until you feel better. This will keep you from doing something that will get you into a lot of trouble like hitting your brother or your sister.
• If you’re trying to be creative, you’ve got to think big because bigger is better when you’re trying to think of new ideas. Don’t be afraid to try something new. Don’t worry if people think you’re weird. You just might come up with a really good new idea that no one has ever thought of before.
• If you’re buying a TV, you should buy a big one because in this case bigger is almost always better.
• If you want to make a new friend, go up to her and say, “What’s your name?” Then you should tell her your name. Then you should ask her, “Do you want to play?” After that you should try her idea for playing even if you’re not sure if you will like it.
• If you’re playing with your Legos and you can’t find a little piece and you feel yourself starting to get stressed out, you should walk away and try to think about something else for a little while.
• If you want to be a good family member, you have to be honest, keep an open mind, be kind, and don’t be mean.
• If you meet someone who looks really different than you or has a different color skin than you do, you should ask him his name, tell him your name, ask him if he wants to play and then realize in your mind that even if he looks different than you, he’s still a kid and probably wants to play, too.

William, his favorite LEGO® set, and my dog, Joey

I am very thankful for a nephew who is so wise and willing to share his wisdom with me. I hope you’ll ask the children in your life this week if they have any advice and share some of what you learn in the comments section below.

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