Student Essay on Kindness
Small Gestures of Kindness Shield Others
By Andres, an eighth-grade student at All Saints.
The building was standing tall, looking down at me. I wonder if this is the way ants feel compared to us human beings. I see my grandmother take the first step towards the building and immediately, my three brothers and I follow. We were on our way to meet the fourth.
On our way in I see a little girl walking with her mother. The little girl had ponytails that looked like flowers sprouting from the ground, just a different color. The mom had a black leather jacket on with a gold zipper flowing down the middle like a wave. The mother was on the phone with someone but that didn’t stop her from holding hands with her little daughter. The small girl and her pink and purple lined sweater disappear around the corner.
When we entered, we told the lady at the front office my mom’s room number, and we were sent up with white wristbands. When we make it to the third floor, I see the same little girl but she is now in a bad mood. Her mom looked stressed; she probably couldn’t find a room. I may not know the situation, but it looked stressful. Hopefully God will put a shield over them soon, everyone needs one at some point.
We made our way to my mom’s room a few moments after that. I stood at the door, not knowing what to expect. I wonder if he would look like all my other brothers when they were first born. I was able to see all of them as newborns being the oldest, but hopefully this time I get to hold my new brother. We walk in and I see my mom with the baby in her hands. She looks up at us smiling and welcomes us to join her on the bed. My brothers and I do just that, but my grandma sits on a chair in the corner. I looked over at the baby and he was just as cute as I expected. I then shift my glance over to my three brothers on the other side of the bed. They were all in awe at the sight of the new addition to our family.
“Andres do you want to hold him,” My mom asks me. I nod my head and say yes. This would be the first time I got to hold one of my newborn brothers. I move my hands over to the tiny baby’s head and his back, to hold him securely. In a few moments, he moves his head, and it tilts over but I catch it in time. I felt like even though it was a small gesture, I did something good for someone that had just made it into this huge and complex world. Even if it was a small favor, it felt like God himself had put me in this spot to protect my brother. He had left me with a job to be the shield, the shield to stop the arrows.
We look at the clock and notice it’s time to leave. So, after we hugged the baby, and hugged my mom, we headed toward the door. Before we leave, she says, “I’m going to name him, Daniel.” I nod my head and leave the room, being able to call him by his name now. Daniel.