When I was in elementary school, I attended a private Lutheran school. Every Wednesday morning, we had chapel, in which we’d go to the church and have a mini, church service. To help keep the younger kids in line and reduce their disruptiveness, the older kids were assigned a chapel partner from one of the younger grades.
As the older kid, it wasn’t uncommon for your young chapel partner to thwart your authority and totally disrespect you. It was rare to get a really good chapel partner, but that’s exactly what I got when I was in eighth grade. This kid was dynamite. He idolized me. He never acted up. He hung on every word I said. He even brought me gifts for Christmas and Valentine’s. In a word, he was perfect.
And I treated him like dirt. I was caught up in my own world of girls, grades, popularity, and sports. I never really gave the little guy much thought. I was decent enough to him when we were going to chapel, but it never occurred to me to get him something for the holidays. It just slipped my mind. And when he gave me my gift with such joy and elation, I was crushed to see the disappointment slowly spread across his face when he didn’t get something in return. All his friends were getting things. All his friends’ chapel partners had remembered to bring something. Everyone except me.
I still regret letting the little guy down. All because I was too stupid to see someone outside myself. I can only hope that my failure didn’t make him negative and cynical about people. I can only hope that someone else came along behind me and spoiled him rotten with kindness.
