The Grace of Children

We're in the hallway. Elias stands with his walker before the front office of Turnagain Elementary School. I stand before him trying to coax him to walk to his preschool classroom. He smiles and looks around the foyer.

A kindergarten boy walking by with his father stops and asks, "What's wrong with him?"

Hmmmm...

"He has a hard time walking. He uses this to help him learn," I tell the curious one.

"I broke my arm! Want to see?" The boy removes his draped coat from his shoulder to show me his cast.

"Wow."

"Want to know how I did it?"

"How?"

"Snowboarding. I'm a snowboarder. I go over jumps. That's how I did it."

"That's cool. I've always wanted to try snowboarding," I say to the boy who smiles broadly back.

The father's smile is more tentative and he mumbles something about how soon my son will be racing down the hallway.

"There he goes," I say and excuse myself to pick up Elias's walker and chase after my crawling son.

Later, when I pick Elias up at the end of his morning session, I see the same boy sitting at a table outside the office. He waves and tells the little girl with him, "I know him. He has a hard time walking but he's a fast crawler."

She smiles warmly at Elias and asks me if I want to see her puzzle.

Comments

[Kyla]

Very sweet.

[Leslie]

Children sure take it all in stride, don't they. They ask a question, get the answer, and move on to the next thing.

[Natalie]

Isn't it awesome how those little kids don't have the same prejudices you talked about earlier? That's a memory to hold on to for the cloudy days.

[Heather]

Totally awesome little boy with a great Dad. Dad gave a good answer and his son took it to heart. He found the good in having to use a walker (he sure is a fast crawler). You have a wonderful school to Elias to.

[laura]

love kids!
this post brought a smile to my face and warmed my heart.
the neighborhood kids around here are all jealous because Daniel rides a bus to school (the short bus)) and they have their mommies take them to school. several have told me (and their mommies) that they wish they could ride the bus like daniel.

[bon]

that's really beautiful, Christy. must have comforted your heart. :)

i think this story illustrates my hope for inclusive education - sure, kids can be cruel. but they're cruel, usually, in attempts to exclude on the basis of what they're taught to see as normal, and often for purposes of competition. if we can raise them to believe that it's not a zero-sum economy and there's enough cool to go around for everyone, and not hammer them with our notions of normativity, maybe we can start to see all of us as a little more whole. maybe.

for Elias and for all kids, i like to hope so.

[bon]

that's really beautiful, Christy. must have comforted your heart. :)

i think this story illustrates my hope for inclusive education - sure, kids can be cruel. but they're cruel, usually, in attempts to exclude on the basis of what they're taught to see as normal, and often for purposes of competition. if we can raise them to believe that it's not a zero-sum economy and there's enough cool to go around for everyone, and not hammer them with our notions of normativity, maybe we can start to see all of us as a little more whole. maybe.

for Elias and for all kids, i like to hope so.

[Christy]

I'm glad to hear the neighborhood kids are jealous of Daniel's bus rides and that it is seen as a luxury--thanks for sharing Laura.

Some of the other pre-schoolers want to play with Elias's walker; its like a cool trike or something.

I do love kids. And yes Bon I hope they all always know that there is plenty of cool to go around... well said.

[Cindy Turnbough]

Christy,
What a privilege to meet you and Elias. He will remain a permanent imprint on my heart when I reflect on this Key Campaign. I heard one senator said it was the best hearing he had been a part of for House Senate and Finance with the personal stories. YOUR story was as genuine and real as you are. This blog you have is
impressive and I am going to pass it on to moms I know who have walked a common path. They will find comfort here. I hope you found some rest when you returned. I wish I had a million to build you a house with elevators everywhere!