Derek is kind hearted, sensitive, intelligent, and thoughtful. Just recently I have noticed when he says family prayers, his prayers have gotten so much more sincere and thoughtful. He thinks of others and obviously spends time thinking about his relationship with God and our responsibility to serve and help others in this world of ours.
At the beginning of the summer the kids and I set a goal to do some service. We thought about several possibilities, but landed on providing a Kiva microloan to someone. The boys worked hard to earn money (mostly doing hard physical labor for Grandma and Grandpa Ludwig- thanks for letting them earn money!). When they had finally saved up $25, they chose to make the loan to Alma, a young mother in the Philippines whose home and business as well as her husband’s business were all destroyed in Typhoon Haiyan. She needed a loan to help rebuild her family’s home.
Later in the summer, Derek was paid $40 to take a test for a study about elementary schools in the area. After paying his tithing and savings, he had $32 left to spend. He thought long and hard about how he was going to use his new wealth.
Later that afternoon he came to me and told me he wanted to fund a Kiva loan all on his own. I asked him if he realized that would take the majority of his remaining funds. He responded that he had thought carefully about what he was going to do with his money. He had decided on purchasing spy gear. He then thought about people in far off countries who need homes and water and food, and decided that maybe his spy gear wasn’t so important after all. I was touched by his thoughtfulness and desire to do the right thing. He loaned $25 to Mishi, a woman in Kenya who has 7 children and lives in a house with no electricity or running water. She needs a loan to purchase raw ingredients for food she sells to neighbors. I could tell that Derek felt good inside, which is sometimes a better return for his money than spy gear might be!
Closer to home, he often likes to fight with Evan and gets bugged with how much we expect of him, but still has that generous and good spot in his heart that shines through.
A few weeks ago Glenn was out of town traveling and had been gone seemingly nonstop for weeks. I was tired and worn out, and the kids were not cooperating. The house was an absolute mess by the time I finally wrangled them to bed past their bedtime. I was frustrated and dreading the long task ahead of preparing the house for the next day. I went downstairs and sat down on the couch and cried a few tears. A few minutes later, Derek got out of bed and came downstairs. He said he wanted to help clean up. Instead of just offering to help so he could delay his bedtime, he really got to work! In just a few minutes the house was looking much better, and he cheerfully chatted with me the whole time. Pretty soon the dishes were done and the kitchen was clean. He skipped off to bed without complaint and with a satisfied smile on his sweet little face. I had a smile on my face too!
It is moments like that when I feel so grateful to have Derek as the oldest child in our family. He compassionate and growing more mature by the passing years. I am lucky to be his mother!
Derek requested a Book of Mormon cake for his birthday which kind of made me laugh a little, but I just do my best to fulfill birthday requests! His birthday was chaotic and busy, so his cake ended up being thrown together at the last minute. It wasn’t beautiful, but Derek declared hesitantly upon seeing it that it was “as good as it could be.” At that point it certainly was as good as it could be, so we laughed as he struggled to blow out the candles in about 4 or 5 attempts, then enjoyed the cake!
Derek still loves Legos and Star Wars, and got a pocket knife and soap to whittle for his birthday.
It’s been a great ten years with this boy of ours! Happy Birthday, Derek!
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