I Love A Little Boy
My Mom died just a few years ago. But for many years, she kept a picture of a little boy on her knick-knack shelf. The picture of the little boy was in a cute heart-shaped frame. And it looked like a happy picture taken many years ago. In fact, it was one of those black & white pictures that came from an old-fashioned photo booth. You know the kind I mean? Where you put money in and hurried back into the booth so the camera could snap your picture?
Well, when my Mom died, most of her things were distributed between me, my brothers, and my sister. I don't think I ever mentioned it before, but I come from a large family. I know I'm always talking about my crazy older brother. But there are other siblings who mostly treated me decently and we more or less get along. Anyhow, I got a few special things that belonged to my mother. Including that picture of the little boy. And without thinking, I stuck that heart-shaped frame of the little boy on a shelf in my living room.
I don't know why but for a long time, that little kid irritated me. For one thing, he never stopped smiling. Every time I looked up at the picture, there he was with that big silly grin. And speaking of big...this kid was a very chubby kid. No one knew why. But something happened to him between the first and second grade. It must have been something bad. Suddenly that kid went from a little skinny kid to a huge butterball of a child. So that fat kid made me uncomfortable. And it made me wonder too. What did a big fat kid like that have to smile about? Surely he must have been teased by kids at his school! Surely he must have been called names--but he kept on smiling. Why? What was that about? Was his smile genuine? Was it a mask?
Then the other day, I came to realize something about that little boy. Something good that made me suddenly see him in a new, positive light. Like a lot of little kids, that kid was keeping some secrets. But despite the things that people did to him sometimes, or said to him, he WAS a happy child. He found things to be happy about. He went out of his way to see the goodness in the world, the goodness in others. And he wore that smile like a beacon.
Plus he had a right to that smile. Maybe he didn't know it then but that little kid would survive the bad things that happened to him as a child. He would grow into an adult who was a pretty decent sort of man, a mostly happy man. And that man he eventually became, that man would look so different from that boy, and yet be similar in a lot of respects. And that man would come into his mother's house and see the little boy he once was sitting in a heart-shaped frame.
So all this occurred to me the other day when I looked up at the photo of that little chubby boy with the big old smile on his face. For the first time, I had to admit that he was a pretty lovable kid. A cute kid really. All those years, I wanted to shrink away from that photo. But finally, I felt like I understood that kid. Finally I understood all the good things my Mom saw in that picture.
Yes, I had to admit it. He was a pretty cute kid, wasn't he? And now when I see that photo, I love that child unconditionally.
And I don't mind telling you that the little boy I love in that photo is me!
Thanks for listening.
Jasper
Well, when my Mom died, most of her things were distributed between me, my brothers, and my sister. I don't think I ever mentioned it before, but I come from a large family. I know I'm always talking about my crazy older brother. But there are other siblings who mostly treated me decently and we more or less get along. Anyhow, I got a few special things that belonged to my mother. Including that picture of the little boy. And without thinking, I stuck that heart-shaped frame of the little boy on a shelf in my living room.
I don't know why but for a long time, that little kid irritated me. For one thing, he never stopped smiling. Every time I looked up at the picture, there he was with that big silly grin. And speaking of big...this kid was a very chubby kid. No one knew why. But something happened to him between the first and second grade. It must have been something bad. Suddenly that kid went from a little skinny kid to a huge butterball of a child. So that fat kid made me uncomfortable. And it made me wonder too. What did a big fat kid like that have to smile about? Surely he must have been teased by kids at his school! Surely he must have been called names--but he kept on smiling. Why? What was that about? Was his smile genuine? Was it a mask?
Then the other day, I came to realize something about that little boy. Something good that made me suddenly see him in a new, positive light. Like a lot of little kids, that kid was keeping some secrets. But despite the things that people did to him sometimes, or said to him, he WAS a happy child. He found things to be happy about. He went out of his way to see the goodness in the world, the goodness in others. And he wore that smile like a beacon.
Plus he had a right to that smile. Maybe he didn't know it then but that little kid would survive the bad things that happened to him as a child. He would grow into an adult who was a pretty decent sort of man, a mostly happy man. And that man he eventually became, that man would look so different from that boy, and yet be similar in a lot of respects. And that man would come into his mother's house and see the little boy he once was sitting in a heart-shaped frame.
So all this occurred to me the other day when I looked up at the photo of that little chubby boy with the big old smile on his face. For the first time, I had to admit that he was a pretty lovable kid. A cute kid really. All those years, I wanted to shrink away from that photo. But finally, I felt like I understood that kid. Finally I understood all the good things my Mom saw in that picture.
Yes, I had to admit it. He was a pretty cute kid, wasn't he? And now when I see that photo, I love that child unconditionally.
And I don't mind telling you that the little boy I love in that photo is me!
Thanks for listening.
Jasper