Monday, July 16, 2012

My heart is smiling tonight. :)

Something out of the ordinary happened to us tonight .. and it still has me smiling.  

Almost every night after dinner, the kids and I take a walk down by the water to feed the ducks, watch some volleyball, and keep Levi happy during his "witching hour."  We make sure to take two slices of bread with us, one for Miss Abby and one for me.  Afterall, who doesn't like to feed ducks?!  

Tonight as we approached the water, I noticed a little boy watching the ducks.  It was the same boy I had noticed earlier on our walk and wondered why he was wandering the streets of Baltimore City all alone.  Yet here he was, doing something as simple and childlike as watching ducks swim around in the water.  

As we got closer to the little boy, he noticed we had bread and said "ducks won't eat no bread."  I replied, "sure they will, they love it" and suddenly he became curious as ever.  So I asked Abby if she would share with the little boy (that we would we later know as Kareem) and she willingly handed him a slice of bread.  And for some reason, tonight I grabbed not just two slices of bread, but three ... and now I know why.  

Kareem started to throw bread to the ducks and his face lit up.  The ducks were swimming faster now and lurching toward the bread.  Kareem's response to this:  "Dang!" It was then, as I saw the excitement sweep across his face, that I realized he had never fed ducks before.  As he ran out of bread, Abby noticed right away and offered him more.  And then more.  It was almost like she knew just how special this moment was for Kareem.  It was so sweet.

The three of us talked a bit more, shared names, and he asked us if we had fed the ducks before.  I told him we like to feed the ducks every night, since it's right by where we walk.  He perked up again and said that he walks every night too.  I'm thinking we may run into Kareem again and I'm guessing he hopes we'll bring enough bread to share.  

We said our goodbyes and the kids and I started to walk away.  From behind, I heard his deep, too grown up for his age voice say, "It was nice to meet you."  We turned back and said goodbye again as he walked back into the streets of Baltimore City.  I don't know anything more about Kareem, other than he enjoyed feeding those ducks tonight, but I sure hope we have the chance to run into him again.



3 comments:

Mary Beth said...

Thanks for sharing this story!! It brought a tear and a smile to my face.... and how sweet of Abby to continue to share her bread with the young boy.

Sue said...

Awww Liz, it's especially gratifying when you realize you've made the day of someone who isn't as fortunate to experience the things that we sometimes take for granted. It's even more gratifying to realize that your kids "get it". Just goes to show the great example you're setting and the wonderful Mommy you are. Nice job Abs, you've made a new friend in Kareem. Love you all!

Carol said...

This story is heartwarming!