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| Ben 18 mos old. |
He was an inquisitive little
rascal at two. Everywhere we went he had questions to ask, things he wanted to
know, and people he wanted to talk to. It was a good thing that we lived in a small
community where people were more like family than strangers, because he wanted
to meet them all!
Main Street was all of seven
blocks long, but it might take us an hour to get from one side to the other,
because he wanted to see everything, in ALL the windows. As we were coming down
the right side of the road, there were several people on the sidewalk moving
with, and against us. One of them was an old woman, whose body was curved at
the spine so drastically, that her eyes were aimed at her toes. She walked with
a cane, and took small half-steps up the street. When she got close to us, my
son tucked himself up into her view and looked up at her with a bright-eyed
smile.
"Hi lady" he said.
"Hello there young man" she replied.
"How come you are bent over like that?"
he asked while my face began to blush.
"That's because I have carried the weight of
the world on my shoulders for a very long time now" she answered him with
a smile.
"It must be very heavy to hold" he
nodded, taking in what she had told him.
"Lady, how come your hair is so white?"
he asked before I could move him.
"Well" she said, "Each one of them is a
lesson I have learned."
"WOW, you must be very wise" he said.
"Lady, why are there so many lines on your
face?" he asked.
She answered him with such grace, "Each line is
a place where God has kissed me."
His eyes got really big, he nodded his head, and
told her "God must love you a lot!"
She told him she could not stand
for very long any more, and that she needed to keep walking. He slipped out
from under her gaze, and kissed her hand.
"You have a good day lady!" he said.
As she walked away, I thought
about explaining when it was appropriate to ask questions of people he did not
know, but before I could say a word my son looked up at me with tears in his
eyes and said, "Momma, she's an angel you know".
How lovely! I absolutely love this story. *smiling* and agree with your baby boy, she is an angel. :)
ReplyDeleteThank you Jo! She was so good about his questioning her, that it made my heart grow. He has been respectful of older people ever since that day, in ways that still make me smile:-)
ReplyDelete:D ben is adorable!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful post!
ReplyDeleted~ ahh thank you :-)
ReplyDeleteTaylor, thank you for enjoying it with me!
ok im crying
ReplyDeleteTwo charming souls.
ReplyDeleteIsn't it interesting how, as we grow, we learn to censor...and that isn't always a good thing. What a nice lesson this was to me. Great story.
ReplyDeleteOh Brenda (wipes a tear away with a smile) if it makes you feel better to know that I cry every time I remember that day... I do:-)
ReplyDeleteGene Pool Diva -- I agree with you. Sometimes the privilege of watching people as they share life, is so rewarding!
Amy -- You're right, that sometimes it is just best to let things be. Her response to him that day made a difference in the way he treated people for the rest of his life. It could well have gone the other way too, but fact is it did not. Perhaps leaving circumstances alone, instead of trying to control things is more valuable than thought:-)
Thank you guys for reading!
Yes, she is an angel. I was so impressed with the way my sister-in-law handled questions from a small child after she had lost her hair from chemo. I don't know if I could have handled it with such grace.
ReplyDeleteJoyce
http://joycelansky.blogspot.com
This is, by far, my favorite post this week. :O)
ReplyDeleteJoyce, I am not sure I would have before the encounter, I am sure that I would pause before responding as a result of the difference it made in my son's life.
ReplyDeleteWord Nerd, Thank you :-)
My eyes are moist, but my heart is full.
ReplyDelete:-)
ReplyDelete