These days, when – at the cash register – I tell a little girl that she’s pretty, I always follow that by saying this:
“One day here, when i told a little girl she was pretty, her mama said, ‘You know what we say, honey, when some nice person says you are pretty.’ And then in unison, very powerfully, they said ‘I’m pretty, I’m smart, and I’m strong – huh!’”
The little girl I am speaking to at this point will almost always say, “I’m smart!” or “I’m strong.” And I will say something like, “Boy, you really are, aren’t you!” And the mother (or father) will usually beam with delight at their daughter.
