Playground Circle

He loved to stick his head into friends conversations and laugh with them. He'd listen to the stories, learning this and that from them, and he'd picture where each one of his friends were from, what their houses and families were like, and what it must be like to grow up in the way that they had. It was generally enough to be witness, but he would always burst out with something, some comment or gesture or attempt to be funny. One time he cupped his hand around the armpit of the kid next to him, said that he just wanted to know what it felt like. "You're armpit is different than mine," he said and looked around for corroboration. No one got angry or made fun of him. The other kids just seemed disappointed -- which was worse than anger.