Easier for a child to do it, because, the child doesn’t have that much to “lose”, but harder for adults, because we considered everything, making things, way too complicated than they have to, be…translated…
My fifth grade daughter loved sharing her days’ goings on with me, once there was a field trip of her afternoon care program, the instructor allowed them to bring the candies and cookies along, as everybody was exchanging the treats a third-grade boy whom my daughter didn’t know well approached and asked if he could have a cookie? The rest of the classmates weren’t willing, but couldn’t tell him now, and still offered it to the boy. As he’d gotten to my daughter, my daughter told him no flat out, then the rest of her classmates also, started saying no to the boy asking them for the foods.
if only, it’s as easy as holding up a sign…photo from online
Although this is only a minor interlude in my daughter’s day, I was in awe at my daughter’s saying no, because I wasn’t adept enough to do so myself. The things I don’t want to agree with, but because of interpersonal connections, I couldn’t, worried that the person I was turning down takes it too personally, or maybe, it’s how I’d been raised, that sharing is a virtue. But, the item belongs to you, if you don’t want to share, then, say it straight “no!”, there’s no need to offer a reason even, just, say no, it feels, great!
And I’d asked my daughter how she could say no to the boy? She’d told me, that I’d, taught her that if she didn’t want to, then she should just, express it verbally.it seems,, things ARE, easier said then, done!
So, your daughter had, put your values that you’d instructed her by to work, while you couldn’t, and it would be easier for a young child to say no to someone asking her/him for something, because there’s not that much to consider, I mean, if you say no to some kid, the most that can happen is the kid stopped being your friends, but if you’re an adult, saying no may have the extra problems of how you think the other person can see you as, and all of that, messes with our minds, and we still went along with what we don’t want to do in the first place!
Mirroring the World 