A Gift

Each day, I greet all of our students by name at the gate. I wish them a good morning. I extend greetings to their parents and siblings as well and have started to remember many of their names too.

Some mornings I'll receive a fist-full of flowers picked on the walk to school. Other days, I'll get a bag of mango slices or an avocado from someone's tree.

I receive each gift with thanks and a hug.

Last week, I received a very different gift.

Elisa came to find me in the auditorium to let me know that two of our students had just arrived a bit late and their mother had a gift for me. A smile played at the corners of her mouth while she said she could not wait to see how I reacted. I didn't know what to expect as I headed down the sidewalk. The students are two of the most impoverished students in our school and I knew that anything they could give would be a treasure to them.

I approached their mother who had her back to me and when she turned around, she handed me a bunny. A real, live bunny rabbit.

She immediately started giving me instructions about how often he needs to be bathed, what he eats, etc. I was shocked that I was holding a bunny, not-to-mention that I was now the proud owner of one.

That afternoon we brought Pelusa the bunny home and the girl's immediately fell in love with him. Emily has plans to take him to school when we get him a travel cage and we'd also like to take him to visit our students periodically. He eats a lot of carrots and celery, but is much quieter than the dog. :)

An excellent gift!