The Slice: So much for ‘kids are bad’ theory

Readers recalled moments that suggested their kids were turning out all right.

“When our son Daniel was in kindergarten, we got a glimpse of the adult he was to become,” wrote LeAnn Whiting.

The lad had arranged to have the family dog brought to school for show-and-tell. And as his mom was busy with the friendly keeshond named Wicket up at the front of the classroom, the teacher asked her to turn her attention to the back of the room.

There was Daniel, with half a dozen classmates who were scared of dogs. He was passing from child to child a big ball of dog hair that he had amassed from days of brushing the fluffy Wicket. He wanted the kids to feel how soft it was, and not be afraid.

“His teacher thanked me for my thoughtfulness,” wrote Whiting. “I had to admit I hadn’t done it. Daniel had done this on his own.”

Robin Robinson shared this.

“A few years ago my son, a student at the University of Idaho, found out that I had unexpectedly lost someone I loved very much. The very next evening his truck pulled into my driveway. He came in the door, walked up to me and put his arms around me and just held me.

“I asked him why he was home. He said, ‘I thought you might need me.’ “

When Enid Trenholm’s 27-year-old son, David, was 5, he was included in a North Idaho newspaper’s seasonal feature spun from asking kids what they wanted for Christmas.

David answered that he’d like a special hospital-style bed for a man — a grandfather-figure he knew from church — who would soon be coming home after major surgery.

Deer Park’s Eileen Hartzell shared this:

“Last June, the best friend of our second son was killed in an accident at work. They served together in the Marines in the early ‘90s and remained close friends, working and playing together after discharge.

“At the funeral, our son wore his dress blues and gave an outstanding eulogy. This was a young man who had a tendency to stammer as a child, but not that day.”

Three years ago, Stacy Baker’s family vacationed in a Mexican coastal resort area that had been slammed by a hurricane just two weeks before.

“We were staying north of Puerto Vallarta and decided to go downtown to see the devastation and provide a learning experience for our teenage boys,” wrote Baker.

“It was heartbreaking. My boys walked in silence.”

The family encountered a Mexican girl (about 13) who was selling flowers. “My oldest son, Brent (16 at the time), whipped out his wallet, bought two roses and gave the girl an extra $20.”

This, by the way, was money he had earned himself specifically for the vacation.

“But I’ll never forget what he did next. He handed me one rose and presented the second to the young Mexican girl. She cried and so did I.”

“Today’s Slice question: Does Spokane have any unique slang?