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COLIN MACLEAN: To my new friend, Lily...

I was disarmed by a child the other day.

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It was a humbling experience, I must say.

I don’t have a lot of know-how with kids. As an introverted only child, I was never around them much growing up, so I just didn’t develop the knack for dealing with them in that easy way some people just seem to have.

So, when a random little girl hugged me, asked me to be her friend and invited me to her birthday party — nearly all in one breath — all I could do was stammer out a supremely unconvincing, “Ugh, um, ah.”

She didn’t notice or care about my awkward hesitation. She just smiled up at me.

I was standing in line at Exor Games in Charlottetown and I was about to spend more money than I should on my hobbies, so I was in a good mood.

The gentleman ahead of me was buying or selling some cards in his collection, and that kind of thing is never a quick process. The staff were busy and I was in no rush, so I just stood there, looking around aimlessly as I waited........

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