Big Heart

Mike, Michaela, and I are in Chicago on vacation. At the beginning of the trip, Michaela found a penny, which is always an exciting thing. She tucked it in the pocket of her jeans and forgot about it.

Tonight we were walking around the city and passed a homeless person. I honestly didn’t notice — there’s a lot to look at and I was tired after taking more than 20,000 steps! We got to the corner and waited for the light to turn green. All of a sudden, Michaela started tugging on my arm, asking if she could go back. I told her no, the light changed, and we started walking. As we walked, I asked her why she wanted to go back.

“I have a penny in my pocket, Mommy, and I want to give it to that homeless person! She looked really sad.”

We’d gone too far at that point, so I told her if she saw another person she wanted to give her penny to, she could. A few blocks down, there was a street performer doing magic tricks. We stopped to watch (Michaela LOVES magic) and she dropped the penny, which she’d been fiddling with, in the bushes. She cried these great big tears, not because she lost her penny, but because that meant she wouldn’t be able to help someone.

She’s such a sweetheart.