You Care

She walks into my room today, when all the others have rushed to their buses. She makes small talk for a while: this class and that class, college applications and problems with boys. I multi-task listening with cleaning, when suddenly her words capture my full attention.
"Mrs. Surprenant", she says, "you care."

I stop what I'm doing, look up and smile at her and casually say "Of course, I care."

She smiles and then repeats herself, "No, you really care. I mean, other people don't care the way you care. It's different."

I smile a huge smile at her and in all seriousness say, "I care because I love you all! It's not a burden, it's a joy!"

In response, she says, "Yeah, but I wish I could figure out how to thank you."

At this point, I am utterly humbled beyond words and all I can say is "You don't need to thank me. I love you because I have a God who loved me even more first."

I was reminded today "to always be prepared to give an answer to anyone who asks for a reason for the hope that you have." 1 Peter 3:15.