Nine Minutes Later

Today is my guy’s birthday. Matteo turns nine.

A few days ago, I went to pick him up from school.

When I arrived, he wasn’t outside with the other kids. He was sitting in the principal’s office.

Ten minutes before the end of class, he had gotten into a fight. He came out with a swollen eye.

On the way home, I asked what happened.

They had been fooling around. Pulling at each other’s pants, trying to tug them down. Everyone was laughing. Until one boy didn’t find it funny. He chased Matteo, pushed him, and kicked him in the face.

We walked home.

I was grumbling next to him, doing what fathers sometimes do.

“Matteo, you’re nine years old. How did you even think this was a good idea? Not only were you in the wrong — you also got punched for it.”

He listened quietly.

Then he said something I didn’t expect.

“Dad, it was the first time I did it. That was ten minutes ago. And nine minutes ago, I learned not to do it again.”

I stopped talking.

There was nothing to add.

Sometimes you don’t know until you try. The important part is not avoiding every mistake. It’s learning fast.

As James Clear puts it: make mistakes — just don’t make them permanent.