Peace Out

While walking to the cafeteria for lunch today, I was brainstorming blog-post ideas. (This blogging-every-day thing is A LOT more difficult than I thought it was going to be. Grump.) I was making some mental notes when all of a sudden I felt a pair of arms around my shoulders.

It was a sweet junior high girl giving me a hug.

She’s a precious one and I gladly accepted and returned the hugging favor. Then she asked me,

“Are you at peace today?”

Okay. What the heck does she mean?

I replied, with my hand making the peace sign, “As in, am I groovy?”

“No, no,” the girl responded, “I mean, are you at peace about Ellie’s surgery?”

Oh, that kind of peace. I should have realized that’s what a THIRTEEN YEAR OLD junior high student, stopping me in the school hallway, on my way to lunch, would have meant by “peace”.

Now, I wasn’t surprised that this girl would ask me questions about Ellie. There are several students attending the school in which I work who either go to church with us, or know of Ellie through their friends. Ellie has become a bit of a celebrity around the school, as kids pray for her and often come up to the library and ask to see the latest Ellie-pictures. PRECIOUS, I know.

Just as I had formulated my response to her question, the girl continued talking,

“I just wanted to tell you that you should have peace about Ellie’s surgery. Because, guess what? I had the same surgery when I was little! And it turned out great! I felt so much better afterward! My parents were freaking out before the surgery, too. But, I know that Ellie will be fine, just like I was.”

Wow, this was new information to me. “What kind of surgery did you have?” I asked

“Oh, I had tubes put in my ears.”

Yes. JUST. LIKE. ELLIE'S.

I stood there for a second, not sure how to respond. On the one hand, I wanted to verbally pinch her for comparing spine surgery with ear tubes. But, when I looked at her lovely face, I realized that she was just trying to help. In a thirteen-year-old way.

“Thank you,” I said. “You’re a sweet ball of encouragement!”

While this dear girl hasn’t a hot clue how different “ear tubes” and “cutting the nerves on the spine” are, she was loving me, loving Ellie. And I really appreciated that. What more could you ask for, really? I work in a school where the kids know and adore my kid. THAT Is a gift.

And, the icing, of course, is that she gave me a blog topic! Sweet thing!