Compromise is the Key

It was a noisy and chaotic night at Harley and Harper’s house. They were having their first sleepover of the school year, and there was no shortage of fun to be had.  

Harley had his buddy Dylan, and they were primarily keeping to his room building forts for themselves to assemble Lego forts under.  

Harper had two friends over, Olivia and Riley. She met Olivia through her gymnastics camp, and Riley was a classmate. So far, they had painted each other’s nails in a variety of colors, making them stand out further with nail charms and jewels. They compared their LOL collections, talked about their favorite chapter book series, and were now joining the boys for dinner before they would branch off to watch a movie.  

Mom and Dad had ordered plenty of pizza, breadsticks, and chocolate brownies.  

While the kids all enjoyed their pizza, they swapped stories on their sleepover shenanigans and asked each other what movie they would be watching.  

“Either The Lego Movie or Lego Batman,” Harley responded nodding in unison with Dylan. They were equally in favor of both. 

“Yeah, or both!” Dylan chimed in, hinting at the potential of a double feature.  

“Oh, that would be fun. What about you, girls?” Harley asked them.  

“That’s easy, we are going to watch the Minions movie,” Harper responded matter-of-factly, without glancing at her friends.  

Olivia exchanged glances with Riley, taking a bite of pizza before saying, “Actually, I kind of wanted to watch Inside Out.” 

“Oh, that’s a good one, or maybe Frozen,” Riley added. 

“What?” Harper laughed, “I’ve seen Frozen hundreds of times, and the first Inside Out isn’t nearly as good as the second one.” 

“But I don’t like the Minions,” Olivia said quietly.  

“How can you not like the Minions? They are so funny!” Harper was quick to say her opinion.  

Riley looked from Harper to Olivia and back, feeling caught in between, “Maybe we can think of a different movie to watch, one that we all like?”  

The boys were finishing their pizza and losing interest in the girl’s argument, exiting the dining room and returning to Harley’s room.  

Mom came around the corner to check on everyone and overheard Harper say, “No, we are going to watch the Minions. Maybe you just need to watch it with me Olivia, you are going to love it.” 

“But I don’t want to,” Olivia said more firmly. 

“Yeah, it’s not fair that you get to decide what we are going to watch,” said Riley.  

Harper was getting upset, “Well, it’s my house, so I get to decide.” She stood up and crumpled her paper plate.  

Olivia and Riley stared for a moment before getting up and leaving the room.  

“Where are you guys going?” Harper called after them, but they did not stop.  

“Are you girls having a disagreement?” Mom asked, putting the pieces together quickly.  

Harper filled her in on what had happened, stating afterward, “See, I’m right. It’s my house, my sleepover, so it should be my choice.” 

Mom’s eyebrows raised, and she tilted her head, “Actually, honey, I disagree.” She started to clean up, gesturing for Haper to help her, “Part of having a sleepover is being a good host. Your friends are guests in your home and should be treated kindly.” 

“I’m not being mean!” Harper defended herself.  

“Technically, you are not, but you are also refusing to compromise and pushing your way or no way at all.” 

Harper thought of that word, compromise, wondering if she remembered the meaning or not. 

Mom helped, “Compromise is when you have a disagreement with someone, and you each agree to put your desires to the side and come up with a new solution. In this situation, if your friends don’t want to watch The Minions and you don’t want to watch the movies they suggested, you would all talk and decide a new option.” 

Harper looked up at her mom, “Is that what a good host would do?” She did not want her friends to be unwilling to have another sleepover in the future.  

Mom put a hand on her shoulder, “Yes, a good host knows when to compromise to make sure that everyone has a good time.” She smiled, “You are doing a great job with this sleepover; I am sure you all can figure it out.”  

Harper thanked her mom and went after Olivia and Riley. She no longer cared about watching the Minions, she only wanted to watch something that all three of them would equally enjoy. She knew she would be much happier if they were all having fun.  

**Have you had a sleepover with your friends? What kind of things did you do? Have you ever had any disagreements like Harper? How did you handle them? Remember, it’s no fun when only one person gets their way - try to compromise next time.  

Brittany Richards is a full-time Marco Island resident passionate about all things literary. Creating stories as soon as she could read and write, she seeks to inspire the next generation to put down the screen and pick up a book. Whether as a nanny, camp counselor, or gymnastics coach, she has a history of working with children. She looks forward to combining her two joys with The Adventures of Harley and Harper. In her spare time, she enjoys traveling to new destinations, boating with her husband, or cuddling up with her dogs.