When Aidan was four he began Walnut Park.  The previous year he attended the preschool on BC’s campus.  While he loved “going to work with Dad,” we realized pretty early on he needed something more.  At his first conference the teachers asked if he talked about school at home.  We shared the stories he told us of his friends, only to learn his friends were college students interning at the center.

At Walnut Park he became quick friends with a girl named Tierney.  She was beginning her third of four years and every bit the match for him.  She loved to read, had a great imagination and together they were great work partners.  After two years of being great friends, they were sad to be going off to different schools for first grade but promised to stay in touch.  And they have.  There have been play dates, though never as many as either would hope for.  The last time they were together was over the summer.

In Aidan’s third grade class students earn “money” as positive reinforcement.  They can save their money to purchase small trinkets from the class treasure chest, extra free time or the biggest ticket item- a special lunch in the classroom with their teacher and a friend.  This kind of motivation doesn’t particularly appeal to Aidan, but he goes along with it and we don’t hear too much about it.

Thursday he came home and showed us a green hair clip, pink bracelet and a rubber snake.  He said that even though he had been saving his “money” for a special lunch with his teacher, he realized that Tierney’s birthday would be coming up and he wanted to get her a gift.  He chose the hair clip and bracelet.  When asked by his teacher why those were his choices he told her about his best friend from his old school who would soon celebrate her birthday and that even though he didn’t see her as much as he wanted, he wanted to send her a gift.  His teacher gave him the snake for himself after telling him how sweet he was.

He asked me for a box, wrote a note (“From Aidan,” not love because its “not like that”) and tied a bow.  We went to the Post Office and he chose a special package to send it.  He wrote out the label (he has of course memorized her address) and asked the woman working there if it could arrive Tuesday, because that will be Tierney’s 9th birthday.  She gave him the tracking number so he could be sure.

There are some friends you see every day.  There are other friendships the endure no matter what.  “She’s been my friend for half my life,” he said.  “I couldn’t miss her birthday because I know she will never miss mine.”