The most beautiful thing about friendship is the ability to communicate with one another….. really communicate. Communication to me means being able to express yourself openly and to have someone understand.

Breezy, my just-turned-five-year-old granddaughter, is one of my closest and tiniest friends. She is humorous and entertaining.  She is a great listener too. I simply love conversing with her. I’d rather talk with her than just about anyone in the world. She is a fabulous communicator.

But every now and then our conversations get a little bit crosswise. For example, on the 4th of a July she spent the day with us. Our other granddaughter, who is ten, was there too. When it was time for them to go home, I asked them to put away all the things they’d been playing with in the sunroom.

A few minutes later Breezy was strolling through the living room with a small yellow and brown carton in hand. “Why aren’t you helping?” I asked her. She looked at me incredulously and replied, “I am helping.” “Well you don’t look like you’re helping,” I responded. She looked shocked, then calmly explained, without guile or sarcasm, “Oh, I don’t look like I’m helping because I’m sipping my Yoohoo.”

Well there you go! How could I argue with that logic? I was actually speechless.

One afternoon my husband and I were arguing about something. We don’t normally argue in front of Breezy. From out of the backseat she yells, “settle down now!” We cried laughing. It definitely stopped the argument. She’d just started Pre-K and we surmised that she’d heard the phrase from her teacher. She’s very good at hearing words or sentences and then later using them in perfect context.

But sometimes she gets things just little bit off. One day she asked me to jump on the trampoline with her. I have no business on a trampoline, but I simply don’t feel as old as I am. So I climbed up on the tramp and started jumping. I have a ruptured disc in my lower spine, so it was really hurting. I told her, “oh Breezy, I’m too old to jump with you.” “I know, I know,” she said, rolling her eyes. “You’re getting ready to go to heaven!” Hmmmm. Well, maybe I’m not quite that old. 😉

And then there are days when we both get it wrong. Earlier this summer we went shoe shopping. We’re both shoe freaks. We’d bought her some “high heeled” blue Frozen shoes at one store, but she wanted two pairs. So at the next store, she found a pair of black boots and was pulling them on when I came around the corner. “Well they fit. But I want to wear them now,” she said. “It’s probably too hot to wear them now but you’ll enjoy wearing them this fall,” I added. They were one size larger than she wears and were a great price, so I grabbed them up. She tried on a few more pairs, but had become pouty about the whole shopping thing. I didn’t know why. I said, “well we already have two pairs so let’s check out.” I bought the boots and as we walked out the door she said emphatically, “but I didn’t want the boots!” “But you said….” was all I could utter.

It took me a day or two before I realized that what she was telling me about the boots was that they fit, but she wanted some shoes she could wear now.” Poor kid! Well, the boots were an awesome price and she’ll get them at Christmas. She doesn’t seem permanently damaged by getting only one pair on our shopping trip that day!

But there are days when we communicate so well; she can be so eloquent. On Father’s Day we met her and her dad at Cracker Barrel. I hadn’t seen her in a couple of weeks, unusual for us. As I picked her up and hugged her very hard she said, “Oh Gigi. I don’t get to give you kisses very much anymore!” My heart melted. What a beautiful way to tell a person that you have missed them.

Breezy is a perfect little person; she is a friend so sweet and so filled with sunshine. She is an incredible communicator. I am blessed by this tiny wonder God has placed in my life. I pray that she and I will always find a way to communicate.

dmzh