Today my toddler showed a level of empathy and compassion that most adults never reach

I just want to share something that happened today... my daughter is almost 1.5 years old. Today at the park there was a group of what appeared to be foster children playing. Their (assumed) foster mom called to them that it was time to go, and began loading them into her van. 1 of them, a boy about 7 years old, sat on a park bench and began very loudly screaming and sobbing. My daughter was concerned for him (she always does this for children who are upset) and walked over to his bench. I squatted down next to her and quietly said “this boy is sad and angry. It’s okay to be sad and angry. Sometimes people are happy, and other times they are sad or angry. I think he is sad because he doesn’t want to leave the park”. The boy then said “No! I just want to go home to my daddy, I miss him” (cue my heart breaking for him). So we all sat there for another moment, the boy visibly calming down at this point. My daughter motioned that she wanted help sitting on the bench. I asked the boy “can she sit next to you?” He sniffled and said, “sure, she can sit right here” (motions to his right). I picked up my girl and sat her next to him as she had requested. We sat there in silence together for a minute while the foster mom finished putting children in their seats. Then, without any trouble or being asked, the boy got up and went to the van to leave.It’s amazing to me how this small gesture of understanding and compassion brought peace to this boy in that moment. I’m so proud of my toddler for learning empathy at such a young age. ❤️❤️❤️ via /r/Parenting https://ift.tt/2pRCNnk