Mariel

For the past year and half I've had a "Friday night job". On Friday nights I would go be a "trainer" to a sweet young girl with a lot of disabilities. "Trainer" mostly means that I would host her friends night (2 or 3 sweet young girls would come play with her, sweetest little girls ever), help her with her social skills, encourage her to use full sentences, help her eat, clean her up afterward, get her involved in activities that would help her mind make a few more connections, administer her medication, and keep her safe while her mom and dad would get one night off.

When I originally took the job I was super busy in school, I was only two semesters into the nursing program and I just wanted a little extra cash. Since then my schedule has steadily gotten fuller and fuller, Ben and I both started working part time jobs on campus, my classes got more demanding, Ben got his bishopric calling, and giving up Friday night with my husband seemed harder to do. However, the time I spent with Mariel was just so amazing. She is the sweetest little girl, she loves everyone immediately. She has cute little catch-phrases that she repeats over and over. After asking me repeatedly every week where Ben was (she's in love with Ben, likes him better than she likes me) I would tell her he was studying. After a few months of that she would just look at me and say, "Ben's studying. Ben's testing." She would always want to call Ben on my cell phone. Once he started talking she would interrupt him and say, "COME OVER!" She is also so cute with her friends, she just loves them and they make her so happy.

The other amazing part about working with Mariel is getting to know her mother, Vivian. Vivian is so strong and is willing to do anything for her daughter. She knows that Mariel will never be able to function at her age level, but her goal is to give Mariel every chance to get better and to let her enjoy as many life experiences as possible. She has truly made the most of a very difficult situation. She is such an amazing example to me of someone who didn't have much go smoothly in life, but is making the most of every day she has with her daughter.

Last Friday was my last night with Mariel and her friends. It was really hard for me to leave. I thought about how much I have learned and all the love I've felt from that little girl, she really just melts my heart. I know I gained more from our time together than Mariel did. I was so lucky to be part of her life for the past year and a half.

On the upside, my husband is pretty excited about me being around on Friday nights....at least until I find an LPN job...