Recently, I had the honor of serving as the keynote speaker for the parent summit for the Department of Exceptional Children with Shelby County Schools.
While at Colonial Middle School where the event took place, I met an amazing young lady, 18-year-old Alexandra (pictured above in the selfie), who is a special needs student in the SCS program. Upon walking in the door at Colonial, I was ushered into the library before the talk and wasn’t exactly sure where to go from there. Alexandra sensed that I was a little lost and immediately made me feel welcome. She directed me to grab a bite to eat at the hospitality table and invited me to sit with her. It was such a kind gesture. I was grateful for Alexandra’s willingness to make me feel so special.
Alexandra reminded me that little acts of kindness can go a long way with anyone whether one has special needs or not. Kindness has no limitations.
Helping others is something that the world-class institution, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, displays every day by leading the fight to beat childhood cancer and other serious illnesses like Sickle Cell. We feature St. Jude in a story (page 20) about how when you give to children of St. Jude, it makes an impact on their lives besides their treatment.
I’m also grateful for our cover kid, Jordyn, and her mom, Robyn, because it taught me another lesson in always being open to the possibilities of every child. The photo shoot took place during my children’s fall break when I was away so I could not attend the session like I normally do. I didn’t know until after the shoot that Jordyn is autistic and has Asperger’s Syndrome. Her mom said it was okay for me to share that with you. You can’t tell by looking at the amazing photos we used for our cover story on fascinating toys to jumpstart your holiday shopping that Jordyn has special needs. And that is just fine. She is a young person who simply enjoyed being a “kid in a candy store.”
As we celebrate Thanksgiving, remember to be kind to each other whether you know the person next to you or not. That’s what makes us all special.
Happy Parenting!