Friend Like Me

Here at our house, we are just happy to have friends. However, the social one of our group is most definitely R. He LOVES playdates with friends here, in Madison, in Knoxville, etc. A typical daily question is "who do we get to see today, mommy?" But, every once in a while, a friend comes along that just has a special connection. Our new friend, Jackson, is just such a friend. You can learn more of his story at his mom's blog Jackson Dean.(http://jacksondeanbarnett.blogspot.com/)

But, long story short...

Jackson's mom and I met on the Hydrocephalus Listserv. This listserv is an online, email based support group for both people with hydrocephalus or parents of children with hydrocephalus. We noticed one another because we both had boys with hydrocephalus who had a number of episodes/complications/surgeries in a relatively short period of time. Our boys have hydrocephalus for different reasons, but the resulting surgeries are just the same (mostly). Both the boys are doing great at the present time, and both of the boys have been through a journey that we don't want to repeat! Jackson (and his parents) moved here last summer from Greenville, SC, and we have had the pleasure to get with them a few times since Christmas. R and Jackson had an instant connection. They both smile from ear to ear the whole time they are together and seem to really enjoy each other company. They both know a little about what the other friend has gone through, and that gives them a person "like them."

Having a "friend like me" is really important to R right now. He wanted to know if Jackson was as scared of pictures (i.e. MRIs) as he was, and he loved knowing another kid who has had pictures. I thought R would want to dwell on the dreary side of their experiences, but they got their simple questions out of the way in about 60 seconds and have just enjoyed having each other as a friend every since.

By the way, R's parents really like hanging out with Jackson's parents, too.

Thank you, God, for giving us another family who knows about this path we have been on. Thank you for moving them to the area. Thank you for providing us these new friends.

Because having friends who understand can (and does!) make a big difference...