what a good heart looks like

Nicolas rushed to the door in his pajamas to greet our former landlady, whom we affectionately call Aunt Judy.  In the one short year that we lived just one floor beneath her, we had come to regard Judy as family.

Once family, always family.

Since she had been gone for some weeks, we hadn’t been able to see her for too long. We all missed her dearly—including Nic. He had heard she was coming over for a visit this morning so when the doorbell rang he was beyond excited. He flung the door open and gave her a huge hug.

He sat with us in the living room the whole time, eating doughnuts and just enjoying the conversation. He showed her his mystery book he was reading, a creative puzzle project he had been working on and treated us all to the dance he performed on closing day of summer camp. The song kept skipping, but he took it in stride and did the best he could.

Later, we went to his school to pick up his report card and confer with his home room teacher. Nic wasn’t required to go, but he wanted to. He loves his school.

While we were waiting for his conference, Nic’s math teacher came out and chatted with us a bit. He was wearing a tie with all sorts of mathematical expressions on it. Nic told me that sometimes he would even wear a math shirt to class. This made Nic laugh. He went on to describe some of his math teacher’s antics in class, all for the purpose of helping the kids learn. Nic laughed some more.

Our conference with his home room teacher came up and Nic sat down across the table from him, expectant and eager.  His teacher had nothing but praise for Nic:

He always tries his hardest.

He’s friendly. All the kids like him.

He’s sharp.

He is a good-hearted boy.

He can feel good about himself.

His teacher added that Nic got great grades but what mattered most is his effort and attitude—that, he said, was simply outstanding.  “I can’t say that about everyone,” he remarked.

I’m proud of my son. I love his smile, his enthusiasm, his can-do approach to life. He is a loyal friend and a willing helper. He loves people like no other person I know. He is an inspiration.