Charlie Brown's Relationship Lessons

Some of the greatest lessons in life of how to handle ourselves in our relationships are often learned during childhood.  The Peanut's cartoons have valuable messages behind the actions and personalities of the characters.  If watching "A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving" is a yearly tradition in your household, pay close attention to the wisdom Charles M. Schulz weaves throughout his stories.

Kenya McCullum is a freelance writer and wrote an article for the Interpersonal Relationships Examiner titled "7 Interpersonal Relationship lessons from 'A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving'".
Enjoy her humorous take on relationship scenarios familiar to many of us.

1.  A liar will lie to you all year round. 
When Lucy tries to convince Charlie Brown to kick the football and land flat on his face, she did what she always does, which is lie.  Thanksgiving is a season of tradition and giving thanks but the message here is that such behavior is the same no matter what the day of year, festive or not.

2.  Some women do go for the smart guys.
Sally has a thing for Linus which is heartwarming and dedicated.  Despite certain cultural stereotypes about what makes for an attractive man,  attraction is a very individual thing.  If the chemistry is there, go ahead and brag about your prize guy.

3.  If you invite yourself to someone's house for dinner, make sure that they can cook.
Peppermint Patty invited herself to Charlie Brown's house for Thanksgiving dinner with the assumption he'll have a spread fit for the holiday.  She soon learns to never assume anything and if you assume wrong, deal with the consequences.

4.  Your sibling will tell you the truth.
Though sibling rivalry may be common, when it comes right down to it, you can usually depend on your family.  When Charlie Brown wonders how he ended up with three uninvited dinner guests, his sister Sally is very honest with him without skirting around the truth.  While other people may worry about hurting feelings if the truth be told, siblings often get to the point.

5.  Sometimes women really do talk too much.
Linus asks Charlie Brown why he just didn't tell Peppermint Patty that he had other dinner plans.  Charlie Brown stated that with Peppermint Patty he just can't get a word in the conversation.
We can all relate to that scenario. 

6.  A good friend will always tell you when you're being a jerk.
We all should have a friend like Marcie.  She put Peppermint Patty in her place when she reminded her that she had no right criticizing Charlie Brown when he did nothing wrong.  Marcie told her she had no right to be rude by pushing the limits of social courtesy.  There is a lesson here for assertiveness training in quiet personalities dealing with people like Peppermint Patty.

7.  Grandparents always save the day.
Everyone should have some sort of support system to fall back upon in a pinch.  Charlie Brown was at a loss as to how to handle his guests, so he called his grandmother for advice.  As grandparents often do, they save the day.

Kenya also wrote an article titled, "7 Workplace lessons from 'A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving'".

Thank you to Kenya for helping us watch this favorite show with a new perspective!
Enjoy your holiday with all the food, family, friends and football.