Yesterday as I sat in the doctor’s waiting room with Hazeline (it seems that asthma has it’s sights set on her now, because Greenleigh isn’t enough) a large family walked in and took seats very close to me. After sitting for approximately 2 1/2 seconds, the little girl got up and went off to play with some other kids in the play area. As she walked past me, I noticed that her jeans were too short and her shirt barely covered her stomach. I immediately thought that she had dressed herself and laughed a little on the inside. Oh good, I thought, glad to know that the desire to dress themselves in non-climate appropriate, clothing they’ve outgrown continues past 3 years old…something to look forward to. But then I started to take a look at the other kids in her family and how they were dressed. It very quickly became apparent that she was probably dressed that way because those were the clothes she had, not the clothes she wanted to wear. And as she shuffled past me from the play area, I noticed the holes in her shoes. And then I remembered that school starts next Monday. As she proudly told the other kids in the waiting room that she was 5, I realized that the little girl would be going into kindergarten in just a few days.
As I sat and watched her, my heart sank a bit. I began to realize how lucky I am and how lucky my kids are. If my kids wear clothes that don’t fit, it’s because they pick them out, not because it’s all that they have. Once they are done wearing them, I wash them and they get put into storage bins not to be worn again (in theory, at least) because they are too small. My kids get new shoes regularly, and I constantly find myself throwing out shoes thinking, “But wait, I just bought these! How could she have grown so quickly?”. Greenleigh went on every single field trip offered at daycare for her age group, even though it caused a sharp increase to the daycare cost that had just gone down because she turned 3. But she loves field trips and that’s all that mattered to me. My kids are lucky, maybe even spoiled at times, but so many are not. My family is like so many that battle their budget, but there will always be money for things my kids need. One day in the very near future, Greenleigh is going to realize that there are kids that aren’t as lucky as she is. She will see another child who has to go without. She will notice other kids’ clothes are too tight or don’t fit. Or that another kid in her class didn’t come to school with a necessary supplies because her parents couldn’t afford it. Or that a friend in her class couldn’t go on a field trip because they didn’t have the money. As a parent, I’m not sure how to explain that to her, because it’s something I struggle with myself.
Every year around this time, Erajh and I step up our efforts to help our community. It takes a lot to get ready for back to school and although we don’t have any kids that are technically in school (yet), that doesn’t mean we can’t help. We participate in local school supply drives and purchase school supply packages at our local grocery store that are sent directly to schools in our area. But because so many of you don’t live in my local area, I wanted to share two easy ways you can help kids get ready for back to school. The first is a game called Tools for Back to School launched by the Boys and Girls Club of America (BGCA) and Disney, where school supplies are donated to a Club Kid for every 5 correct answers you give. That’s it. Playing on your computer can help a kid get ready for school. The questions are primarily about the BGCA, which I didn’t know much about before, but the game is pretty forgiving and allows you extra chances here and there. Plus, you might just learn something – I had no idea a former president was a member of BGCA! The second way you can help is to round up your purchase when you shop at JCPenney during the month of August. All of the money created from rounding up will go directly to benefit the BGCA.
No matter what you decide to do, there are so many kids in need, please take the time to help. Even if you can only help in a very small way. Because it would probably be a pretty big deal to a little kid.
I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of Boys and Girls Club. I received a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.
