I've raised three daughters and had a hand in raising eight grandchildren. It's been my experience that the character of the child becomes apparent very early in life.
Last night we had a little dinner party at my eldest daughter's house and the conversation slipped around to some of the antics of our younger family members. I told a story that impressed me greatly when it happened and was powerful enough in it's content to still fill me with awe.
Years ago I took care of three grandchildren a few times a week and one of our favorite outings was to a park where there was a large wading pool. The children were quite young at that time with the youngest, a girl, being only 1 1/2 and her brothers were just 3 and 4 years old. Tyson was the oldest and had distinguished himself from birth as a happy, contented, and responsible little boy.
This day we were at the park and the children were playing in the pool as Gramma watched diligently. Aeron was such a tiny little thing and I worried about the rambunctious antics of the older and larger children in the pool because they could have hurt her by just knocking her over.
I remember her tiny little self standing on the rim of the pool as two much older boys jostled each other in play near her. I watched carefully, not wanting to move in unnecessarily, but not wanting them to get too close to her. As I was about to step in and safeguard Aeron, her brother, Tyson, who had also been watching carefully, stepped up and inbetween his little sister and the larger boys. He said nothing but simply placed his little 4 year old body between his sister and what he thought could be danger. My heart melted.
Today, Tyson is a grown man in this third year of university. He has strong character and determination, just like when he was a little boy.
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