Erek The Red

Erek The Red

I met this kid for the first time, eight years ago today.

My life has never been the same.

This is my nephew, Erek. While I don’t know what it’s like to feel love for a child of my own, I can’t imagine loving any child as much, or more, than I love this one. He’s turning eight today and I can’t believe how quickly those eight years have gone. He has taught me so many things.

He’s taught me patience. When a baby is crying for no apparent reason and there’s nothing you can do to get them to stop, you learn patience.

He’s taught me kindness. Both of his siblings are autistic and frustrate him to the edge some days, but he’s the first one to stick up for them and remind the rest of us when they simply don’t understand. He’s kind to them and expects it of others too.

He’s taught me how to be loud and have fun. When he was about two, he couldn’t say banana; instead he said “bana.” I kept trying to get him to say banana and he would just yell back at me, with the mischievous little sparkle in his eye, “BANA!” We had shouting matches until we were both laughing so hard we couldn’t talk anymore.

He’s shown me the importance of having a sensitive side. When his mom is having a rough day, he honestly tries to understand and show he cares. Just yesterday I was pointing out to him how much his mom did for his birthday party. He felt bad because he’d been grumpy all day (we all have our days), and when she came back, he started to cry and tell her that he felt bad because of all of the work she’d put in for his special day. He worked really hard from that moment on to change his attitude and I think this picture shows that he was successful.

I think I could write a million things about how this kid has changed my life and how much I’ve learned from him, but nobody has time for that (or to read it). 

We don’t all have to be mothers to understand the difference that a child can make in our lives. We only need to be willing to love them – they always give it right back.

Originally posted on January 3, 2016.

Leave a Reply