Thursday, February 21, 2008

Scenes from a heartwarming day

One of my clinical assignments in in our toddler group, with kids from under 2 up to about 3ish. Some have different challenges, others are typically developing peers. Here are some incredibly touching things that happened today:

One little girl was cry very, very hard this morning. Her friend seemed unsettled by this, though neither said anything to the other; the second girl just kind of ignored her crying friend. At the end of the class, the first girl said, "I'm sorry I scared you when I was sad." So perceptive, and sweet!

We've had some trouble with some of the older kids not being as accepting of some of the children who aren't talking yet, due to different challenges. One of the girls had said some not-nice things (for 3 year olds) about not wanting to play with those friends. Today, one of the clinicians explained that one of the boys just needs some help with some things (he has a syndromic condition). Immediately, she takes him under her wing, helps him with *everything*, hangs out with him ALL DAY and calls him "my little buddy." The same little boy she refused to play with last week. SO cute.

Finally, I was playing "hurt leg" with one of the more verbal boys. They love to play doctor and fix people, and as I was laying there with my "hurt" leg, this little guy treated me with such tenderness as he "fixed" my leg that it melted my heart. His ultimate solution? To cut off my feet and attach new ones (but he did it so skillfully!). I think he has a career in surgery ahead of him.

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