My soon-to-be six year old son just finished kindergarten. A few months back, on a Saturday during the middle of the winter season here in cold & snowy Minneapolis, my husband and I were out shopping with our five kids (the son in the story is our second oldest.)
So as we were wandering around the store, our little guy saw something he just had to have: a kids size Minnesota Vikings winter hat and pair of gloves. It’s his absolute favorite NFL team — our entire family bleeds purple & gold, especially my husband and our three boys — so he fell in love with them on the spot and just couldn’t leave without them. I was hesitant, because they were not cheap ($40!!!) and as the mother of five young kids, I know how easily little ones lose their hats and gloves… we go through tons each winter. But I just couldn’t resist, so hubby and I bought them for him as long as he promised that he absolutely would not lose them. He agreed.
He wore them to school every day the next week and proudly returned home each day with his Vikings gear in tow — I checked the moment he climbed in the car when we picked him up from school. After that, I figured he’d proved he was responsible enough that I didn’t need to keep hounding him about it, so I just let him put the hat and gloves in his winter bag along with his coat, snow pants, boots, etc. each afternoon when he got home from school and trusted they were in there.
Then a week later, when I went to do the laundry, I couldn’t find the hat and gloves in his bag. I went to ask him where they were — he and hubby were, ironically, watching the Vikings game on TV — and my little boy’s head immediately fell, a disappointed look appearing on his face.
“I don’t have them anymore, momma,” he whispered sadly.
“Oh no, honey, did you lose them?!” I replied incredulously.
My son shook his head. “No.”
Huh? Confused, I asked, “Then what happened to them?”
“I gave them away,” he told me solemnly.
What??? I sighed and gently scolded him, telling him that he can’t be giving his things away like that, especially when they were so expensive.
Then my husband asked who he’d given them to. Our son answered the name of another boy in his class. I knew that the boy’s father had died a few years prior, and his mom had recently lost her job so money had been really tight for a long time. When we asked why he’d done that, his answer literally shattered my heart.
My sweet, innocent, caring little boy replied, “Because he doesn’t have any hats or gloves, mommy, and his head and hands get cold at recess every day. I have bunches more hats and gloves at home that I can wear. Is that okay?”
I’d never been so saddened but so incredibly proud at the same time. My son adored that Vikings hat and gloves, but he’d selflessly given them away to a boy who needed them much more than he did. I started to cry and hugged my little guy, telling him what a good, sweet boy he was and thanking him for being so kind, generous, and compassionate. Something as simple as a hat and pair of gloves had really make a difference for that classmate.
It was one of those proud parent moments where you wonder what you ever did to get lucky enough to have such wonderful babies, and you love them even more than you thought was possible.
Today, six months later, I’m happy to share that my son and the boy he gave the hat & gloves to have become good friends; they have play dates every couple weeks and play together at recess every day. He’s such a sweetheart. Also, the boy’s mother got a new job so the two of them are back on their feet and in a much better place.
Hooray for happy endings :)
So as we were wandering around the store, our little guy saw something he just had to have: a kids size Minnesota Vikings winter hat and pair of gloves. It’s his absolute favorite NFL team — our entire family bleeds purple & gold, especially my husband and our three boys — so he fell in love with them on the spot and just couldn’t leave without them. I was hesitant, because they were not cheap ($40!!!) and as the mother of five young kids, I know how easily little ones lose their hats and gloves… we go through tons each winter. But I just couldn’t resist, so hubby and I bought them for him as long as he promised that he absolutely would not lose them. He agreed.
He wore them to school every day the next week and proudly returned home each day with his Vikings gear in tow — I checked the moment he climbed in the car when we picked him up from school. After that, I figured he’d proved he was responsible enough that I didn’t need to keep hounding him about it, so I just let him put the hat and gloves in his winter bag along with his coat, snow pants, boots, etc. each afternoon when he got home from school and trusted they were in there.
Then a week later, when I went to do the laundry, I couldn’t find the hat and gloves in his bag. I went to ask him where they were — he and hubby were, ironically, watching the Vikings game on TV — and my little boy’s head immediately fell, a disappointed look appearing on his face.
“I don’t have them anymore, momma,” he whispered sadly.
“Oh no, honey, did you lose them?!” I replied incredulously.
My son shook his head. “No.”
Huh? Confused, I asked, “Then what happened to them?”
“I gave them away,” he told me solemnly.
What??? I sighed and gently scolded him, telling him that he can’t be giving his things away like that, especially when they were so expensive.
Then my husband asked who he’d given them to. Our son answered the name of another boy in his class. I knew that the boy’s father had died a few years prior, and his mom had recently lost her job so money had been really tight for a long time. When we asked why he’d done that, his answer literally shattered my heart.
My sweet, innocent, caring little boy replied, “Because he doesn’t have any hats or gloves, mommy, and his head and hands get cold at recess every day. I have bunches more hats and gloves at home that I can wear. Is that okay?”
I’d never been so saddened but so incredibly proud at the same time. My son adored that Vikings hat and gloves, but he’d selflessly given them away to a boy who needed them much more than he did. I started to cry and hugged my little guy, telling him what a good, sweet boy he was and thanking him for being so kind, generous, and compassionate. Something as simple as a hat and pair of gloves had really make a difference for that classmate.
It was one of those proud parent moments where you wonder what you ever did to get lucky enough to have such wonderful babies, and you love them even more than you thought was possible.
Today, six months later, I’m happy to share that my son and the boy he gave the hat & gloves to have become good friends; they have play dates every couple weeks and play together at recess every day. He’s such a sweetheart. Also, the boy’s mother got a new job so the two of them are back on their feet and in a much better place.
Hooray for happy endings :)