You Never Told Me!

My favorite part of the day is when I walk into the classroom. To see the children's faces light up as I enter and to see them say "Hi Mr. John!". One little girl catches my eye every day, Megan who sits in the row next to me. No matter how tired or exhausted I am, all she has to do is flash me her little smile. A smile that is rare and beautiful. There are few people in this world who can shine a smile the way she does and every smile is a warm gift to light up my day.

So the little girl approached me and asked,
"Mr. John, who's your best friend?"
"I have a lot of friends!" I replied with a smile.
"Yea, but who's your BESTEST friend?"
"I think one of them is Mario."

Mario who was eavesdropping on the conversation suddenly looked at me.
"Me?! I'm one of your best friends?"
"Well of course Mario! I sit next to you everyday!"
"You never told me! I didn't know I was one of your best friends!"

What looked like tears began to form in his eyes. I was taken back by his reaction. I was so confused and was curios as to what was going on in his mind. Soon enough, I realized that he couldn't contain his joy. Words that can be thrown around in the adult word with little to no meaning, meant the whole world to him.

"I want you to be one of my bestest friends too!", he cried out.
"Haha, okay, of course I'll be one of your bestest friends!", I replied.
Mario jumped out of his seat and threw his arms around me. I laughed at his little arms attempting to give me a hug. I hugged him back trying to show him how much I valued his friendship. It must have been a sight to see. Like a bear hugging a rabbit.

My heart moved at that moment, but it wasn't his words or his hug. When I looked into his eyes, I saw the genuineness of his affection, his love, and his friendship. I have a friend, and his name is Mario.