Citizenship 101 Taught By A Child

I hate crowds.

Well, maybe hate is a strong word.  If there is an event where there is a large crowd, I will usually be at home, in a crowd of markers and pencils.

This 4th of July, we had plans to relax a little......until.....

Frog finally found an apartment! We looked at calendars and tried to coordinate a time to get stuff from Iowa.......all the way over to Nebraska.

As the holiday approached, I asked Tall Man if he would take a small break and drive out with me.....honestly, so he could lift all the heavy stuff!

We also surprised Frog with PUPPY!

So happy together......Puppy was glued to Frog the whole time!

I stuck around to help with cleaning and putting some of Frog's things away.  Frog and her beau decided I had to go see the celebrations downtown.  Did I mention that it was the Fourth of July?  And did I mention that Frog lives in "America's Small Town 4th of July City" otherwise known as Seward, Nebraska?

We walked downtown to check out the food, the crafts, the food, vendors, the food, events at the bandshell,  the food, and the highlight was ...... the parade!

I do love a parade.

I love the people watching of a parade,
but I still hate the crowds.

There were some very obnoxious teens and more obnoxious parents, so we walked the parade route.  I knew I wanted to get pictures of this event and blog about it.  We stopped in an open spot, with a nice view of all of the floats!

...and this! We haven't quite figured this guy out yet.

It was all the normal parade stuff. Firetrucks, cars with grand marshals, pretty girls, and....

....this! I wonder if she went beyond peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for this award!

Then I saw her.  See her in the picture above too?

She waved at the parade as it passed by, she chatted with other kids waiting for candy to be thrown, she bartered with other kids so she could get different candies, or maybe her favorite candies.....the joy in her smile, the wonder in her eyes, the happiness of a parade.

What she did next though......
She stood out on the street, gathering, collecting the treasures that were thrown and then she walked back to the curbside and.....

.......gave it all away.....

...again and again.

This is what it means to be a neighbor.
This is what it means to be a friend.
This is compassion.

This is citizenship.
This is America.

I have tears, even now as I write this.
This little girl stirred a passion in me.....
       .......to give without any thought of self.....
         .......to love my neighbor, even if they are a stranger to me.

I bent down and told her mother that she should be so proud of her daughter. She is a very special soul.  Her mom explained that she is actually fifteen years old and she is a special needs child.

I corrected the mom.

Her daughter is a very SPECIAL child!

Graduation

Another graduation.  My Frog is all grown up and ready to head out of the door.  She has filled her schedule with work for the summer and the list is long of things she needs to get ready to leave for college in the fall.

It was a relaxing day, enjoyed by family.  Next week is the big party and celebration.  We still had a lovely day with a small lunch and sharing gifts for our graduate.

The Man Child once again had the realization though.......who is going to take out the garbage at his graduation?

She has a Puppy on Her Back

We all have that addiction...the monkey on our back.

Everyone except Frog.

She has a Puppy on her back.

She will ride around on Emma's back for hours.

She likes to participate.

She likes to see what is happening.

And she loves to wash dishes...

she might get to lick something!

A College Tour

Frog has been looking at one college for a long time.  She has her dreams and her goals.  One great goal that she has is how to lower her debt impact from increasing college prices.

My Frog has been checking out ROTC.  Their scholarship program is great!  We should know.  Tall Man used an ROTC Scholarship for his education.  It has been an awesome career and lifestyle.  I have always looked at it on the scholarship side of it ----- yes, that is right, the money.

We went for her formal interview portion last week.  We skipped off to my alma mater of Western Illinois University.  They have great new facilities for the Military Science Department….gorgeous….and yes, I think her interview went great!

She loved the campus and the ROTC facilities so much, she voiced out loud that she might apply to Western!  Well, if you want to apply to WIU, let’s look at the other department you will be spending lots of time in.  The Art Department. 

What awesome memories hit me as the first waft of chemicals from the Printmaking classrooms overtook me.  Ahhhh, to be home.  We saw the light on in the litho room and I got a bonus surprise!  Don Crouch was checking out some fresh prints his student assistants just pulled off the press.

I introduced Frog and explained I was showing her the department after her interview over at ROTC.  We continued to discuss the current program and current professors, but Don kept turning and commenting to Frog, “You wanna be a soldier?”

I threw in what a great scholarship program they have and what a great advantage to go to school through that program.  Frog stood silent and just watched the interaction.  Later she mentioned, in passing, how many students only apply for the money, however, even if she doesn’t get the scholarship, this program really interests her and she plans to pursue this path.

Thinking on this comment for a couple of days, and watching her prepare for her next adventure at the high school, I have a new view of my daughter.  The next time I hear the comment, “You wanna be a soldier?”  I now have a different response, a new enlightenment, a change of perspective given to me by my daughter……

“No. She wants to be a leader.”