This was recently shared with me by a guardian:
I have a client who had a terrible childhood. Then she met her husband who treated her like she was the most precious thing in the world. This made her very happy. He passed away a few years ago and she has been lonely since and sad. Each week I see her we talk about her life and I learn a little bit more about her.
Today, New Year’s Eve, when I went to see hr, she was very concerned. She had received a soft blanket throw for Christmas and was trying to figure out who gave it to her. I told her it was from Santa. I told her that we make sure all our clients get a Santa gift at Christmas because everyone deserves a little something special at Christmas.
She got teary eyed and said it was her first. I said, “Your first what?” And she said it was her first gift from Santa. She said that as a child her mother had told her that Santa didn’t come to little girls like her. She had never received a present from Santa in her life. Her husband had been very generous and always made sure she had a great Christmas but she had never received a present from Santa.
I told her that she had now and that I was happy she liked it. She took my hand in hers and with tears rolling down her cheeks she said, “Thank you. I will never forget this. I got my Santa gift. You don’t know what this means to me!”
You never know what your role as guardian means to each individual or how you affect their life. You hope that what you do makes a difference and brings some quality to their life. Sometimes, like today, the client brings quality to your life.