We’ve heard it said that ‘boys will be boys.’ This often vaguely refers to horseplay. Sometimes, it takes on a more sinister implication when you factor in toxic masculinity .
Is there a specific, positive example of ‘boys will be boys’? Turns out there are plenty. The responses to this r/AskReddit question put a wholesome spin on the old saying.
RELATED STORIES
Maybe this is why women live longer.
“[Four] grandkids between 5 and 7. Two girls and two boys. 30 gallon fish tank in my living room. The girls look intently into the tank, the boys pull over a chair to stand on, open the lid and put their arms in to try catching them. So it goes…”
If they’re doing the wave, you’re legally obligated to participate.
“When they do the wave, and one guy doesn’t do it and gets yelled at by all the other guys. Or the other scenario where if it succeeds then the guys then cheer.”
There’s nothing that a hundred men or more could ever do.
“I’m a camp counselor, and once my whole unit (~40 13 y/os) was having an overnight under the stars and around 10 minutes after we had finished sending them to bed, I just hear the quietest ‘I bless the rains down in aaaa-frica’ and most of the boys joined in in whispering Toto’s ‘Africa’ before they went to sleep.”
This is less fun as an adult.
“Riding a bike into a wall at full speed, getting hurt, getting back on bike and doing it again.”
“My nine year old brother once tried to ‘jump’ his bike off a four foot loading dock to impress his friends and ended up doing a faceplant. He lost two teeth and needed about 25 stitches. He was back on his bike doing stupid stuff with his friends the very next day.”
This one is highly specific, but I’ll allow it.
“Dressing as Daenerys Targaryen for Halloween because he lost a hockey bet and his best friend wanted to be Khal Drogo.
Source: This happened to my buddy a few years ago.”
They mean well.
“Bring their mom flowers they pick from her garden cause they think it’ll be what she likes even though they don’t know they just took her hard work out of the ground.”
“Little boys and their mothers. My late wife woke up to a Birthday sandwich composed of two slices of bread, peanut butter, green spray food coloring and a maraschino cherry. With two little boys patiently waiting for her to take a bite.”
I’m sure someone was impressed.
“When the local church function has finished and they need help putting away all the chairs so you try to take four chairs on each arm to try to impress… someone?”
“It’s all about trying to impress yourself. Men need to be reminded that they can.”
It all smooths out.
“The thing I’m most proud of about us guys (or at least the ones I know) is that no matter how mad we get at each other how much of a screaming match we get into when you wake up the next day it’s back to normal. No one usually mentions it but we all know they didn’t mean it and we all know they regret it, we’re friends and we’re sure as hell gonna stay that way.”
Sometimes it’s easier than talking it out.
“Boys helping each other through tough times by doing activities with their friends. They don’t have to even talk about the issue. It can be a way to help them decompress and take their mind off of it. Boys will be boys when they’re playing sports, fishing, gaming, playing cards, or whatever it is they’re doing that’s helping one another.”
Sure sounds like 8th grade.
“In the 8th grade, while on a week-long school camp trip to to a mountain resort, the boys and girls were put in separate cabins. At around 11pm our teacher came to say good night and check on us. He walked in on us in the midst of duct taping a volunteer to the ceiling beams, all of us in our boxers (for some reason) and cackling wildly at our success. We wanted to see if the tape would hold him, and it did!”
Sometimes, people need to borrow some tall.
“One of my absolute favorite things is when a little old lady at the grocery store asks me to get something from up high.”
“I enjoy getting stuff from the high shelves too. Did it wrong the first few times. Once I figured it out, it was okay. Turns out they don’t want you to lift them up to the shelf.”
Is this even possible?
“Recently I watched a group of boys use another boy as a jump rope. Jump rope boy was having the time of his life.”
“You can’t have fun without tempting natural selection at least a little.”
Big rock go splash.
“When we all throw rocks into the water to make big splashes.”
– u/ogt13
“I was doing this the other day with a puddle in our yard and my sister asked ‘Why do you do that?’ and I had this moment of looking down at the rest of the rocks in my hand wondering why I did it.”
I wonder what the record is.
“I’m late to the party but my boyfriend and his friends have this game where they compete to see how many people a year they can pull out of ditches, snow, mud, etc. The rule is they have to take a picture or it doesn’t count.”
Blurring the lines of wholesomeness.
“I’ve straight up smashed a jar, causing glass to shatter everywhere and ruining whatever was inside that my wife was planning to use.
Better I waste the content of the jar and risk having my kids cut themselves from shards of glass, than feel unmanly.”
Just like a dog.
“Finding the perfect stick.”
“Ok so I’m a mum to a toddler boy and I’m just learning about the whole stick thing. He has a good stick which he takes on his way to nursery and I have to bring back home and keep safe. Then there’s another good stick for going to the playground, and one for pretending to do karate.”
It’s free entertainment.
“Kept hearing loud smashing noises outside my window followed by delighted, sports-game type screams. I went to see wtf was going on and the frat house across the street has SET UP LAWN CHAIRS across from a house being demolished. Every time the demolition crew got a big chunk smashed, the guys would jump out of their chairs screaming and clapping.”
I need to hear the couch story.
“My boyfriend’s little brother and his friend got stuck in a tree because they were trying to see who could get the highest.”
“Same thing happened to me and a friend once, except it was a couch, not a tree.”
Hole gang rise up.
“Shortly after graduation last year a close friend of mine was about to leave for boot camp. One of the last things that him, myself and a few other close buddies did before he left was go to the beach and dig a huge hole and just hang out for the day. Simply because that’s what he wanted to do and it’s how he chose to spend one of his last days before he left.”
Free cupcakes?!
“I live in the South, and whenever we get a big snowstorm, there’s always a group of guys in lifted Jeeps with winches who drive around looking for cars to get un-stuck.”
“An older gentleman did this for me once during an icy snowstorm, and I was so grateful I tried to ask him to my apartment to bake him cupcakes.”
