There’s a rule at Friendship Montessori School that each child may bring one “friend” to school for the purpose of snuggling with at nap time. Most of the time, Alden brings Monkey (who is, as you might have guessed, a plush monkey). Almost always, Kato brings his Nen Nen (a stuffed cow with no stuffing that has been loved nearly to death). The idea is that the snuggle friend must remain in one’s cubby until nap time, at which point, he, she, or it is retrieved for the purpose of nap time companionship.

August, who has the unfortunate distinction of being the only child in the family not yet eligible for the privilege of attending FMS, caught on to this arrangement and started to scheme. Every day when we get to school, he goes over to Kato’s cubby and climbs inside. And sits there with an air of indignation, as if daring me to remove him.

It’s pretty clever, actually. If the rules say he cannot qualify for school as a student, then perhaps he can stay as Kato’s snuggle friend.

Alas, though the logic is sound, the reality is so unkind. The unwritten rules suggest that snuggle friends do not require naps or need to have their diapers changed.

And so poor August will simply have to wait and grow up a bit. But his time is coming. Just wait until he discovers that one day he’ll get to have a cubby of his own.