A Fleeting Moment

Sometimes the smallest things catch me off guard and really make me ______. Fill in the blank with: wonder, think, sad - in this particular case all of those words would apply.

This morning I had a student come into the office. She handed me an envelope and said that her mother was coming in to sign the document inside; after it was signed she asked that I put it in her teacher's mailbox. I told her I'd be happy to. She left the office and a moment later, came right back in and looked at me sheepishly. She looked kind of sad and asked if, when her mother got there, I would call her to the office. We normally don't do that, but before I could say anything, she said "I just want to see her."

My heart just broke. This young girl is the product of a divorced family. She lives with her father and her step-mother who is less than gracious towards her biological mother. I could see how anxious she was about asking and her eyes were pleading with me to not say 'no'. How could I? She's 11. She desperately wants to see her mom. Who could say no to that?

Her mom came in a few hours later and I called the girl to the office. You've never seen two eyes so full of joy! Four, really. Her mother was just as thrilled to see her as she was to see her mother. They hugged and talked for a few minutes, and all too soon, the girl went back to class and mom left to go on to her own class. I felt so sad when they parted. I wondered when they'd see each other again. Not soon enough, I'm guessing.