Today, I had the pleasant surprise of seeing two palangi children at school, a boy and a girl ages seven and five who had just recently moved to Tonga with their parents from the states. Their parents had gone quickly to the store and they were under the supervision of a Tongan co-worker of mine.

I introduced myself and showed them where my classroom was, asking them if they wanted to color or read any of the books that I have. They were excited to see another palangi. I made connections with them about home and let them know of who I was and what I was doing there so that they no longer thought of me as a stranger (you know how we teach kids back home about strangers... and rightfully so). I wanted them to feel comfortable, and I told them that if they ever felt scared they could always come to my classroom to draw.

A little while later, I observed from the staircase the little palangi girl, walking hand-in-hand with my co-worker to the playground where Tongan boys and girls were playing. The Tongan children instantly ran over to her and held her hands. They stroked her hair, and smiled at her and led her over to the bars that they were playing on. Tears once again filled up in my eyes at witnessing such acceptance, curiosity and love.

Kids are so generous; so kind, pure and innocent. They live to smile and laugh with each other and that's all. We should all let them remind us to do just that: smile, play and laugh. That would solve a lot of our problems today. We need to be more like them. We need to be more like them.