four square at the pool

We have been going to our local pool for the last four summers.  SJ and Bob love it there.  Of course, they love to swim, but they also love to play Four Square.  For those of you who are not familiar with this game, there is box with 4 squares.  You stand in a box and the King (best box) starts by bouncing the ball into one of the other 3 squares.  That person has to bounce it into another box and so on.  If you can't bounce it into another box, you're out.  Bob has been good at this game for the last few years.  SJ almost always gets out and then gets mad.  Some of the kids know he is not so great at this game and they will spike the ball into his square.  It is almost impossible to bounce it back into another square when it is spiked.  When he goes over to the park with Bob, I don't worry so much for SJ.  I know that Bob will look out for SJ.  Today, SJ decided to go over to park without Bob.  I sat on my towel and observed from a distance.  I thought it was going well, but I couldn't hear what they were saying.  After a few minutes, I walked a little closer to the park so that I could hear what the boys were saying.  The boys were playing normally and there were a few older boys.  The older boys tend to play much rougher than the kids that are SJ's age and younger.  To my surprise, the boys were being very kind to SJ.  When he got out, he would simply say "Dang it!" and get back in line.  One time a boy did spike the ball into his square and SJ just said that was cheating.  The boy said it was allowed and they continued to play.  No tantrum, no yelling, no crying was heard.  All I heard was the laughter of the boys playing.  The best sound I heard was SJ's laughter.  For those few moments, SJ was just another typical boy playing Four Square.  I will be thinking about those few moments for years!