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 The
best thank youDon Schmitz & Grandkidsandme Dapper Dan was the nickname I used for the most difficult child I ever had in thirteen years of teaching first grade. Unfortunately, he represents many children and grandchildren who are begging for our love. Dan looked to me as a father/grandfather. His father and mother gave him little attention and he craved love. The one person who meant most to him in his life was his grandmother. Grandma was elderly, not very strong and couldn’t keep up with a busy first grader. I will never forget my first week in the classroom with Dapper Dan. He was a very skinny small boy with a gorgeous smile but his smile was seen far too infrequently. The day I recall most vividly was the day Dan decided he was not going to go to lunch with the other children. He proceeded to latch himself to the desk with his head inside and wouldn't let go. We had to get to lunch but there was no one to help. What was I to do? The only option I could think of was to carry Dan, his chair and his desk down to the Principal's office while we went to lunch. I remember feeling like a mother duck as I carried Dan, his chair and desk, followed by twenty-five first graders through the secretary's office and into Principal Kovatch's office. Mr. Kovatch was shocked to say the least. He said very little; his eyes told the real story. We left Dan there. No more than five minutes later Dan came walking into the cafeteria with Mr. Kovatch, wearing the biggest smile we had ever seen. Dan continued to be the most difficult child I ever taught and required constant attention, From that day on, I knew, no matter what he did, when I could get Dan to smile his gorgeous smile, everything was right with the world. Years later, Dan came to visit me at school. He stood before the class dressed in his Navy uniform wearing his beautiful smile. Already mesmerized by his uniform, I asked Dan to speak to the class. He shared with the class that there were only two people in his life that ever showed him love: his grandmother and Mr. Schmitz. He shared, too, that he was home to attend his grandmother’s funeral and that he had come to tell me how very important I was in his life. Then and there, in front of the class, he thanked me. It was the best thank-you I have ever received. Don Schmitz is a popular speaker and writer on parenting and grandparenting. He is the author of The New Face of Grandparenting…Why Parents Need Their Own Parents and founder of The Grandkidsandme Foundation and Grandparent Camps. Don holds graduate degrees in Education, Administration and Human Development. He is the father to three sons and nine grandchildren. Contact Don@grandkidsandme.com |
