Helping

A couple of Wednesdays ago at Cubbies, we learned about Helping Others. It was a big deal. The Cubbies were listening. Mrs. C* talked about Big People Things: sacrificing and sharing - even when you don't feel like it. So, at the end of class, after most everybody went to the bathroom (a very popular thing to do), to put in practice what we had learned, the Cubbies leaders and our dozen or so 2-5 yr. old charges were out the door and on our way to the nursery to share our snack with the babies.

We sat on the rug in the nursery and the Cubbies started opening their individually-wrapped ice creams. "Cubbies, is that the way you help others?" Mrs. C* asked. They tried hard to remember the right answer. "Remember, we're sharing," she continued, "offer some to the children in the nursery." The Cubbies stood up to serve.

They offered ice cream to the only two kids in the nursery: the little girl who was too little to have ice cream and the little boy who was allergic to dairy products. They didn't know why the kids wouldn't accept the treats, but it didn't bother them much. They looked around, figured they were done with the hard part, and sat down to eat.

They licked and slobbered and made a very expected mess. The babies just watched with open mouths. You could tell by their expression that an ice cream social on the nursery floor was most unusual. The Cubbies finished up, cleaned up, and lined up. A Cubby was confused because he had lost his ice cream. I found it. It was on the floor. He and the leaders who cleaned it up were sad.

We marched out of the nursery and back to the Cubbies room. I put the extra ice cream away and looked around the classroom. The kids looked angelic; they were proud of themselves. Helping others had been hard, but it was worth it.

*Name changed to protect Mrs. Dee