That's what I told Josh's mom. I had been praying for over a year now that a boy James' age would move into the ward...and that he'd be nice. With all girls (and one boy he doesn't get along with) in his primary class, he hates church. [Of course, how many kids that age actually like it?] And of course, no friends at school, and for his protection, he can't go out front or he'll be attacked one way or another by the bullies on all sides.
At the beginning of the school year, a family moved into the ward that had a boy James' age. At meet-the-teacher night, I discovered Josh was in his class both in primary and at school. Josh turned 8 in August, a month after James, but this kid is huge. He is about a foot taller than James and I would have guessed his age as 10. (All their kids are really tall for their ages.) His mom says he has Aspergers too -- only I don't think they have him diagnosed and he's not in special ed. And Josh takes meds for ADHD too. They have a lot of the same quirks so when Josh comes over, I am totally familiar with his odd reactions. Josh has a heart of gold, just like James. The amazing part is that they play together better than anyone I've ever seen; they are like soulmates. Sure they get upset when one doesn't do what the other wants. But they somehow work through it, forgive, and forget about it. The training they've both had is evident as they coach each other and give each other pep talks to help the other get over their emotional hurtle. I am in awe of the way they interact. Of course there are tears at departure and minor tantrums when we tell one of them they can't do something, but because we are dealing with two of a kind, somehow it works. It's like seeing James in a mirror.
I hope this family stays for a long, long time. Both kids are so sweet. And maybe a big black kid like Josh will be intimidating enough by appearance alone that all the other kids will leave them alone.
A bonus: Josh's sister Emma is in Megan's kindergarten class. (Unfortunately, there are two CTR 5 classes and Emma is in the other one.) And their brother Zach is 3, a good age for Isaac. And they only live a couple blocks away so they can play together often.
A friend for James. Sometimes, prayers take a while. But this is more than I even asked for.
1 comment:
That's so awesome, Julie! Hope all is still going well. We're about to try our younger son on a run of ADHD meds; I'll have to shout out for moral support. Thanks for being such a good example, Julie; you're amazing!
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