Living Outside The Lines: “A Child’s Heart”

Four years ago, during our youngest son’s freshman year at college, I experienced one of those beautiful moments when the actions of my child literally took my breath away.

Becky J Miller | Exclusive to Corridor News

To call my 6’1, 200 pound, now twenty-one old college football player a child is a stretch by any means, but if you’ll humor me, I have a pretty amazing story to tell.

Ask any parent and they’ll tell you that raising children takes a lot of faith; you do the best you can and hope they turn out to be sane, responsible, and productive members of society.

Some days you hold your breath and pray, but on others, you are rewarded with a snapshot of the person they have become, the one you hoped they would.

Four years ago, during our youngest son’s freshman year at college, I experienced one of those beautiful moments when the actions of my child literally took my breath away.

While I was in the middle of my afternoon workout, a text message from our son arrived. He needed a favor. The family of one of his high school friends had suffered an incredible loss, the death of a loved one.

The extended family was selling brisket sandwiches to raise money for the funeral expenses. My son asked if I would please go buy some. It was 2:40 and they were shutting down at 3.

Keep in mind; I’m mid-work out which means I’m sweaty, stinky and basically a mess, but do you think I let that stop me? Nope. I googled the address to try and determine where I was going, grabbed a jacket, my purse, and headed out the door.

I had twenty minutes to successfully complete the mission, with no cash, and no exact directions. The ATM, a necessary stop, was not on the way, and I wasn’t even sure how much money was in the account.

We purposefully keep the account balance low, and I had no time to check the balance, transfer funds, or even text my husband to see how much money was there. I was walking completely by faith.

After finding the house and successfully procuring four brisket sandwiches, I finally relaxed; then came the tears. I wept for the family that had suffered a loss, I wept for the young man whose life ended so suddenly, and I wept at the compassion displayed by my child.

My son was over 250 miles away when he got the news, but he did not let distance stop him from acting. He couldn’t drive home and help, but he knew someone who could. He didn’t hesitate to ask; there was a need and he acted.

It was an incredible gift to witness the man my child had become, a man with an exceptionally tender heart of compassion who acted in his friend’s time of need. This Mama could not be prouder!

Until Next Time,

Becky J Miller

“Warrior Princess”

Becky J Miller is a contributor and is exclusive to SM Corridor News. You can read more of Becky’s columns in Lifestyle.