Today's Helping of Chicken Soup for the Soul

[Guest guest]

The Yellow Ribbon

It was a hot, muggy day during the summer between second

and third grade. My hair was in a French braid with my favorite

yellow ribbon - the one my Great Aunt Lilly had given me before

she died. " Flaunt it, Honey, " she'd told me, whatever that

meant.

Like every summer day, I was in my front yard playing with

Wilma Wynonna Willett, my imaginary friend. Since I wasn't

allowed to leave my yard and no one my age lived nearby, " Triple

W, " as I called her, was my best friend.

Suddenly out of nowhere came a big yellow moving truck. I

heard an annoying beep and realized our new neighbors were

moving in. I was excited, though I prayed there wouldn't be any

boys, because boys, of course, had " cooties. " But then, I saw

an unusual object being removed from the truck - a wheelchair.

It looked cold and heavy. What kind of people were moving in?

They were obviously not like the neighbors I had grown to expect

in my sheltered life.

Soon I learned these neighbors had a daughter my age named

. She could not walk or talk, however, and she was

confined to the wheelchair. I didn't know how to respond.

Should I go over, shake hands and introduce myself as my parents

had taught, or should I hide under my bed so I would never have

to meet her?

The problem was solved when my mom announced that the new

neighbors were coming for dinner Friday night. When the

doorbell rang, I answered and introduced myself. 's

parents quickly explained that had been born with cerebral

palsy, an incurable condition that limited her mobility,

controlled her muscles and destroyed her speech. Pretty

sobering news for an eight-year-old whose previous hurts were

healed with a kiss and a bandage.

Timidly, I said " Hello. " Then I heard it, stammering from

the bottom of her stomach and exploding from her lips: the

loudest, strongest and most peculiar laugh I had ever heard. My

mom told me that Victor Borge once said " Laughter is the

shortest distance between two people, " and this couldn't have

been more accurate. Even though could not speak, her

laugh did not need any explanations. Instantly I knew this was

the beginning of a very special friendship.

I could not understand why the other kids could not

perceive as I did. Instead they made fun of her,

threatened her and even tipped her wheelchair. I, too, was

teased because I was friends with " Cripple. " No matter how hard

I tried, I couldn't make the other children stop.

What did I learn from my friendship with ? I learned

bad things happen to nice people. Life was unfair! I learned

lessons no other situation could have taught: I learned patience

as I watched painstakingly perform simple tasks that took

forever because she was not physically able to do them any

faster. I learned compassion when I heard the teasing and saw

the hurt in 's eyes. I learned about courage as I watched

face the battles she had each day with her body and

speech.

Each morning, awakens to powerful, painful muscle

cramps; eating is a chore because she is fed every meal; talking

is only something she and her parents dream of. cannot

stand, but if she could, she would be five feet six inches tall.

She has big brown eyes, soft curly hair and, of course, that

great big laugh. is able to understand when spoken to;

she simply cannot respond with speech. Instead, she

communicates by pointing to the communication board on the tray

of her wheelchair.

This past summer, I had the honor and privilege of being

's able-bodied person in the Special Olympics. My job

consisted of helping do anything she would have done if

she were not handicapped. I wrapped her clenched hand around

the ball before we threw it. Our hands swung that bat together,

and I cheered the loudest when she won the wheelchair race. We

were a team and our bodies worked together to pursue the " gold. "

Watching each Special Olympian compete in his or her event

made my heart cheer and cry at the same time. Most of all, it

made me appreciate the many blessings of life I had taken for

granted. Helping win the gold in two of her events was a

gift we gave each other. I took the yellow ribbon that was in

my hair that day and tied it around 's long, curly

ponytail.

" Flaunt it, Honey, " I whispered, finally understanding what

Great Aunt Lilly had meant.

by Nikki Willett

Reprinted by permission of Nikki Willett © 1999, from Chicken

Soup for the Unsinkable Soul by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor

Hansen and McNamara.