They're More than just Stickers now

Everyday, at the end of class, Dylan and his classmates are rewarded with stickers- depending on how well they did that day. Of course, the more stickers, the better. Dylan was always ecstatic about this and, without fail, would show me his collection beaming with pride. Every day.

Last week, the boasting stopped. I never questioned it or asked what had happened to the stickers. I just assumed maybe the teacher was running out or hey, maybe he wasn't cooperating too well (haha).

As i was sitting in the living room yesterday, Dylan comes up to me and comments on the bombardment of stickers living on my laptop. He asks me, "Are those your stickers?"
I say, "Yup."
He says, "That's a lot of stickers. I have a lot of stickers too. You wanna see?"
Of course, i oblige.
He runs away in a hurry and comes back holding his Assignment Notebook for school.
"See?!?!?" He beams.
I stare at the notebook to find a scatter of stickers all over its cover.


"It's like your computer!!" He exclaims happily.
I look at him and i melt.

The teacher then explains- when his turn comes to receive his stickers, he rushes to grab his notebook and opts to have them stuck on there as opposed to having it put on his face/hand/arm. Dylan explained that he wanted it- "just like Mommy's computer".

***

I am going to be the greatest influence on my son's life.
I didn't fully grasp the idea of this until yesterday.
Everything i do or say, the way i act, how i handle situations, and how i speak to him... it will all reflect on the kind of person he's growing up to be.
What a huge responsibility... i hope i do this right.
I'm doing the best i can... i know that much.