Life is Suite

Do you ever have moments that stick with you and you’re not sure why? I have several random memories from childhood that have stayed with me over the years long after they should have been forgotten. I mean, come on. I’m the girl who goes to the store to buy milk, comes out with a cart full of groceries and no milk. And yet, a memory from fourth grade is so vivid, I feel as though it could have occurred yesterday.

As a child, I always thought that everyone had the unconditional love and support of their parents. I know I did. My parents weren’t perfect, but I knew for sure that they loved me and that I was their number one priority. I just thought that was the norm. I’ll never forget the day I learned that wasn’t always the case. I had a friend in school that was named Shawn. He was such a sweet little guy. Shawn and I were birthday buddies; we shared the same birth date. And in elementary school, birthdays are a big deal. So, perhaps that is why I always felt a connection to him. I remember Shawn coming to school one day and talking about how tired he was. I asked him why he didn’t get enough sleep the night before and he said that he had fallen asleep in the bathtub and woken up in freezing cold water. His mother and father had gone to bed without him, leaving him to fend for himself. That struck me so hard. I wasn’t even allowed to cross the street by myself, and here is a child exactly my age that has to do everything on his own.

It was that day that I realized that not everyone’s home life was as cheery as mine. I have never forgotten about Shawn, even though it has been twenty-five years since we have had contact. And now, even with my own children I think of him. I can’t imagine as mother, going to bed and leaving one of my boys in a cold bathtub. Even as a child I knew that was wrong. And yet, people live other people’s wrongs everyday. I’m thankful that I knew Shawn. I hope wherever he is, that he turned out all right. I’m also thankful for a wonderful set of parents that never left me to fend for myself. It is because of all of them that I know how to be the right kind of parent to my amazing little boys. Life lessons in fourth grade, they happen. Are you paying attention?