Gracious Girl

Dear Lila,

As you get older, I worry about the world of "mean girls" that you will inevitably encounter. People can be so cruel and I worry about how someone as sweet, kind and soft-spoken as you would handle them. Sadly, you have already experienced some mean-girl behavior in 5th grade this year, and from a girl who was supposedly one of your best friends since the 1st grade no less. She started saying rude things to you and icing you out and she has done the same to several of the other girls in your class, so she has actually become a bit of the class pariah. But instead of saying rude things back to her and icing her out, you told me that when you see her sitting by herself in class or at lunch, you wave to her and gesture for her to join you. She doesn't but, Lila, I am immensely proud of you for being so gracious. Bestowing kindness on someone who has wronged you many times in the past takes an incredible amount of strength and you do it without even thinking about it. You are amazing. On this Mother's Day, I am so grateful that you are my daughter.

Love,

Mom