My fifteen year old son brought me a sugar cookie today from school.  He has one every day with his lunch, and has told me how yummy they are.  While this may not seem like a big deal, it’s a huge deal to me.  You see my son’s only surviving grandmother passed away suddenly about ten days ago.  Prior to that day he was a typical 15 year old boy, he barely spoke to me, always playing his computer games, smart mouth, etc. If I tried to hug him, he would act like he was dying.

I only have one child.  My son and I were very close when he was little. Once puberty kicked in, that all changed.  He doesn’t talk much and is painfully shy.  I on the other hand can talk to anyone, anytime or anyplace.  He has a hard time making friends, and doesn’t seem to care to meet new people.  He was very close to his grandmother.  She spent a lot of time with him.  She lived close by, and was in good health.  Often picking up our son after school and taking him to the dollar store, or for ice cream.  She was a dear woman.

My husband is devastated by the sudden loss of his mother, as am I.  We just saw her the week before she passed.  We live in the same area, and would see my in-laws several times a month. We encourage our son to try and make friends, but he’s been rejected so many times, it’s like he’s given up.  As a parent, it’s heartbreaking to watch your child be rejected by others.  I just want to tell those kids what an awesome person my son is, and how they are missing out by not wanting to be his friend. We as parents can only do so much. Our greatest wish is for our children to be happy.

In the past few months, I’ve been trying to go for some stealth hugs and kisses from my son.  He hasn’t be recoiling like he was six months ago, so I thought I was making some progress.  He’s a sophomore in high school, and I have come to the realization that he will be leaving for college in a few years.  My mother in-law was a shining example of a good mother.  She was always there for her children, and they were her life.

Our lives get busy and we sometimes forget just how precious our children are.  My heart breaks for my husband, his siblings, and my father in-law. When I said good bye to my dear mother in-law at the funeral home, I told her I would take care of her son and her husband.  I will do my best to honor her, because that’s exactly what she would do.