When They Turn Out Good

When D1 was in elementary and middle school, she had a friend who I always liked a lot.  I'll call her Danielle, since that's her name, and thanks to the wonder of FaceBook (tm) I've reconnected with her.  She went to FIU and now works locally, and is marrying a nice fellow in the coming months.

I also well remember Danielle's brother, who I'll call Sean, since that's his name.  He was a tall and handsome boy, but what I remember most was what a kind soul he was.  Once, when I fetched D1 and Danielle from a bus stop, Sean had given them his umbrella -- keeping their precious hairstyles intact while he got soaked.

Near the end of middle school, D1 had a strange habit.  Even though we had moved close to the school, D1 still asked us to drive her 4 miles west, to our old 'hood, so she could ride the bus with her friends.  We'd comply, of course.

One time, apparently the bus didn't arrive, and most of the kids were offered rides with Sean's friend's parent.  Sean stayed behind, with his older sister and D1, to make sure they were safe.

I lost touch with Sean, but his sister posted a news article about him today on FaceBook, from a local Atlanta paper.  Sean, I pieced together, graduated from FIU, worked at a local JCC, and then scored a Director's spot at an Atlanta JCC -- focusing on special needs kids.

The article profiled an autistic boy at the center, and how Sean, through patience and skill, taught the boy basketball, and was able to have the boy socialize more with the other kids.  The child's mom was interviewed, clearly overjoyed at the progress her son had made, and further amazed at the "guardian angel" her son had found: Sean.

The article brought me to tears -- the kind of tears I enjoy.  Tears of happiness.  Tears that show, even in this world of Trump, and selfishness, there are young men like Sean.

I reached out to him and his Mom, Sherri.  I texted Sherri that, to me at least, nothing in this world matters more than how you are as a parent, and that Sherri had won the Lotto with her kids.

In Sean's FaceBook (tm) pictures, it shows him with a pretty young lady.  If she's smart, she'll hold on to him.

He's a true mentsch, and I'm proud to say I knew him when.