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Show Inside Out, 138 And then I thought, it would be stupid to lie to Terra anyway. What kind of friendship could we have if I'm always trying to figure out what she wants to hear and then say it? Sure, she might like me more at first, but she would never be a. friend. I had a flashback of when I was a little kid, seven or eight. I would play this game in order to get Mom's approval. I would try to figure out how she felt about something- her favorite color, for example, or her favorite kind of pie. Then I would try to tell her that it just happened to be my favorite before she realized that I already knew it was hers. That way, she could be delightfully surprised that we were the same. That way she would like me more. It dawned on me right then, while I was hanging there in down-dog trying to figure out how to be a real friend, that I had spent all of my time trying to get Mom's approval, trying to make myself "the good kid" in her eyes, "the one I like best." And hardly any time at all figuring out what it was I really liked, for myself. What an irritating kid I must have been to live with. I took a breath and said, "I really like Mrs. Ottley. She's my favorite teacher. What about you?" Terra was quiet for a minute, finishing up a lunge. Then she said, "I really like her, too. I trust her. I think she really wants our lives to be better because of what we study." "You're right," I said. Then, after a moment, "Not many kids like that, I bet. I mean, it seems like most of the kids are just trying to figure out what she wants to hear and then say it back to her so they can get an A." |