When a sixth-grade teacher opened up to his class about a family emergency, he didn't expect anything in return. He was just letting them know what was going on. Then a sweet student gave her ice cream money to him. But the kind gesture had a heart-shattering reason behind it!
Price Lawrence is in his first year of teaching the sixth grade at Highlands Elementary in Huntsville, Alabama. And when tragedy struck his family, he tried his best to put on a brave face for his students.
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But kids are pretty perceptive. And not long into first period, the class figured out Mr. Lawrence just wasn't himself.
So, when his worried students asked him what was wrong, Price spilled the beans. His wife's father had passed away, leaving Price sad, as well as worried about his wife.
At the end of second period, Price stood in his doorway giving high fives as the students left his classroom. Many of the kids had already told him they were sorry to hear of his loss. But one little girl slipped something into his hand. The student gave her ice cream money -- 3 quarters -- to Mr. Lawrence with this heart-wrenching explanation:
“This is for your wife. I know it was real expensive when my daddy died and I don’t really want ice cream today anyways.”
Needless to say, Price was blown away. He took to Facebook to share the real-life inspirational story, writing:
"I wish the world would pay more attention to children. We could learn a lot from them."
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It's heartbreaking to know this little girl has already experienced the pain of losing her father. But for her to come away from that kind of tragic experience with such a heart for others who are mourning. . . WOW!
Price told his wife Jessica what happened, and she says the "little girl's heart" affected her in the most positive way. It reminded her of advice TV icon Mister Rogers shared about dealing with tragedies:
"My mother would say to me, 'Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.' To this day, especially in times of disaster, I remember my mother’s words, and I am always comforted by realizing that there are still so many helpers — so many caring people in this world," Jessica wrote on Facebook, quoting Mister Rogers.
This sweet girl was the helper Mister Rogers talked about. Losing a loved one is never easy. But, this "act of love and generosity, from a total stranger and child no less" is the light that always shows up to fight the darkness. And in these times, God wants us to focus on the light.
Be sure to show someone you love the light by sharing this inspirational story with them!
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