Sometimes you love your child more than you thought possible. And I don't mean looking at them when they're sleeping! But when they do something for someone else while they themselves are also grieving. A sudden gesture that immediately shows what a very sweet little person he really is. Then you know:somewhere we have done something good. Preschoolers, you might be amazed!
Our daughter is 5 years old and the following also applies to this little one: what you see is what you get † When she's happy, she's extremely happy. When she is sad, the whole world should know that she is sad. In short, she is good at expressing her feelings, she does not hide anything. Sometimes this is a struggle. I think she can sometimes be a little tougher, but since I'm kind of cut from the same cloth, I understand her all too well. And of course that is difficult for a 5-year-old. You are taught to be honest, but you have to be tough. How do you pour that into the barrel?
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So today I had a case of my heart exploding with love. It's the national reading weeks, which means they were read to at school. The library was introduced, and so on. But they were also allowed to take their favorite book to school and the children who dared were allowed to 'read' something from it. Of course she dared and as it turned out:a competition was organized and Madam was allowed to participate. A jury was assembled and the winner(s) were announced on the schoolyard. Of course we whispered to her that there's a good chance she won't win. There are several toddlers who participate, but participating is more important than winning and it is already very cool that she dares.
And then comes the award ceremony
All mothers are in the schoolyard to be present at the award ceremony. The names are called up. The first is out of her class, she claps and cheers loudly, until the penny falls to her that she has not won. I can already see her face getting dark, she's trying to fight back the tears, she looks at me and starts to cry. Big tears with spouts of intense sadness, she declares she will never participate in a competition again. I try to explain that this is part of it. That she did her best, better next time and even more of that kind of boost. Whether she hears me and whether it comes in, I have no idea…
Suddenly she turns to her other classmates and sees that her fellow classmate and fellow competitor is also grieving the loss. She takes her bag, goes to her and asks her mother:“Is she also in such sadness? The mother confirms this, Tessa reaches into her bag and hands her a handkerchief, puts her arm around her and whispers the same words I just tried to comfort her with.
She wipes her own tears and those of her friend. Rubs her cheek again and goes looking for the other competition candidate to worry about that. When it turns out that there is 'nothing' wrong with that, she proceeds to the order of the day, namely a children's party that needs to be celebrated.
And that's why I love her even more than I ever thought possible!
Image used via Shutterstock
