The Heart of A Child

I hope you all will indulge me while I share a little about my granddaughter Taylor.   She is my daughter’s 9 year old, and she has a twin brother.   We have been overly-involved with these two sweet peas since the day they were born and make no apologies for that!   (I’m sure all grandparents out there can understand that)!    Taylor and I have always had a special bond, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.     She has a heart of gold and has always been a friend to everyone.

 

She took this “selfie” recently

 

Way back in 2nd grade she had a little friend “Mary” (not her real name) who took a growth spurt and was a lot taller than any other child in her class.   “Mary” also had some learning disabilities and a little bit of a speech problem.    One day the class was taking a field trip and each child had to have a “buddy” on the school bus.   No one wanted to be Mary’s buddy so before it became obvious that Mary was being left out, Taylor quickly spoke up and said she wanted Mary to sit with her and be her buddy that day.    It happened that Mary’s mother was chaperoning the field trip and was so moved by Taylor’s actions that she fought back tears….she later sent my daughter a message about how much she appreciated Taylor’s kindness to Mary and even sent Taylor a letter thanking her for being Mary’s friend.    Taylor and Mary have not been in each other’s class since the 2nd grade but remain friends.    And every year when awards are being handed out, Mary always has one of the highest AR reading scores!   

Last year each student had the opportunity to be selected either “Queen of the Jungle” or “King of the Jungle” for a week.    Taylor has been selected “Queen” several times.    One week when it was time to vote for a new King, there was a little boy in her class who had never been chosen and according to Taylor, no one wanted to be his friend (why are kids so cruel?).    Anyway, Taylor elected him and more or less convinced the other kids to vote for this little boy….he was crowed King of the Jungle for a week!    The teacher knew what happened, and who was behind his being crowned, and wrote the sweetest letter to Taylor.   I wish I could share it here but it would be too personal with children’s names and I respect their privacy too much.

Just this past week, Taylor wanted to invite a little classmate to go to Wednesday night church with her.    Taylor called the little girl’s grandmother, who is raising this child, and invited her friend.    The grandmother then called my daughter, Taylor’s mom, and they met on Wednesday night so the little girl could go to church with Taylor.    The grandmother explained the circumstances by which she was raising her granddaughter and it had nothing to do with the little girl, but the grandmother’s son…don’t know anything about the mother.    But the child is being well cared for and taken care of….don’t you love it when a grandparent steps in to see that her grandchildren are being raised right?     Once again, the grandmother was thrilled that Taylor had included her granddaughter and invited her to church.

A couple of years ago one of my daughter’s friends little boys had some serious medical issues and spent a good bit of time at Children’s Hospital in Birmingham.    During one of the times the little boy was at Children’s, was the same time Taylor’s class was learning to write checks.    She wrote a check for $900.40 for her friend Chase.    I shared this story earlier but think is bears repeating.    When Shannon told her friend about Taylor’s “check” the friend relayed the story to her husband and told Shannon that the husband never cried, even when they got married and at the births of their  boys, but when he found out what Taylor had done, he cried!   

(original story here)

 

At no time did Taylor ever share any of these stories with her mom, the adult or teacher always told my daughter what Taylor had done.     Taylor does not see what she does as something special, it’s just how she is.    I think part of it may be that her twin, our precious Jackson, also has learning disabilities and speech problems.     It makes Taylor sensitive to what the world may consider an “underdog” but to Taylor, everyone deserves to be treated fairly and with respect.   

She is growing up way to fast for me but I’m so proud of the child she is and the young lady she is becoming.    

Over the years:

 

 

The twins in 1st grade

 

Her mom (my daughter) and Taylor at my mom’s church

 

Me and my Tay-Tay at a church banquet

 

Posting one night when she was spending the night

 

Taylor and her Pop (my husband) discussing the merits of their ice cream! 

 

I had to share this one of both of my beautiful granddaughters!

 

 

She loves playing softball (summer 2013)

 

Taylor and her cousin at the ball field

 

Posing at her mom’s office last summer

Thank you for allowing me a walk down memory lane with my “heart” and granddaughter.       I will end my post by saying what we always say to each other….”I Love You More” Taylor!