Is it nurture or nature?

How is it that little boys seem to be able to form weapons out of any thing handy to them at the moment? I know, I know, you hear this a lot. But, it really is true. I just had lunch with my six year old son. On the menu this Saturday was a toasted cheese sandwich. Toward the end of our lunch, after he had eaten away most of the gooey interior of the sandwich, he picked up the "L" shaped crusty remains and started pow pow powing away exclaiming "look mom, a pistol". I had a similar experience with my older son when he was only four. After boarding a plane for Florida, as I buckled him into his seat, I noticed that he had a piece of Brio train track stuck down his shorts. Amazed, I asked what in the world he was doing with a piece of train track down his pants. He responded that it was his Power Ranger sword, of course! How he slipped through airport security is anybody's guess! Not to be out done by the antics of his two brothers, my third son used to walk around the house with a box on his head brandishing a card board paper towel tube pretending it to be a light saber with which he could obliterate all the hostile aliens of the universe.

Being the mom of three boys, my days are continually orchestrated by the background noises of imaginery weaponry. I am a peace loving person and have always advocated tolerance and peaceful resolution of conflicts with my kids. So, why is it that these three continually find enjoyment in aggressive imaginary play? Is it a boy thing? It is interesting to think about...nurture vs nature. I do think that most of it is learned behavior, from watching movies and of course those "benign" cartoons! But, there has to be some kind of catalyst that nature provides. I am confident that my husband and I set good examples, providing the warmth, love and security necessary, so that even though our boys test their world in an aggressive manner, they know the boundaries of acceptable behavior. Overall, I'm not all that concerned by their cheese sandwich guns, Brio swords or paper towel laser beams, because I know that my kids can also be loving and kind and that is what really matters to me.