Her best friend

She has a best friend. They met when they were only babies and have been best friends ever since they were just 5 years old. They are both spoiled little princesses with HUGE attitudes. They have a habit of shutting out the entire world when they are together, even excluding other children. The best-friend-bubble that they wrap each other in is filled with conversations about clothes, lipgloss, and candy.

And, boy, do they love each other.

This best friend, who will also remain nameless out of respect for my daughter's privacy, has over the years become very protective of my daughter. She knows about tourette's syndrome, but has absolutely never let it effect the love that she has for her buddy.

I remember one particularly bad day, I had to take the two of them into the grocery store. Her tics had been out of control for most of the day. Her vocal tics were outrageous, she was rolling her neck and jerking her arms and legs. She was sucking in her breath so hard that I kept turning to check on her. I just knew she was going to pass out from the way that she sounded.

We rushed through the store like a huddle of tornados. I think the best friend sensed that I wanted to get out of their as quickly as possible, because she helped me gather all of the things that I needed on every isle. By the time we made it to the check out line, I was a little relieved. There was only one family in front of us and they didn't have much....

.... but they had a son the same age as the girls.

He immediately became aware of my daughter and turned around to check her out every time a burst of noise escaped her. He would watch in amazement as she jerked and twitched, not trying at all to hide his curiosity. Every time he turned around, she would get louder. She knew that he was watching her and it was upsetting her.

The best friend was watching him. Every time he turned to look, she would cross her arms and stare straight into his face like she was about to claw his eyeballs out. I didn't know what to do to fix the situation, so I just let it play out.

Finally it happened. He turned one last time, and found himself right in the face of a very upset best friend.

"STOP STARING AT HER. THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH HER. SHE IS MY BEST FRIEND AND I LOVE HER VERY MUCH."

Then she put her arm around my little girl's shoulders and pulled her close.

"You are super beautiful. That is why he can't stop staring."

Immediate love for that child over took me in a huge wave of appreciation. My daughter instantly clung to her words, the trust in her friend giving her comfort.

The boy slid away with his family just seconds later, and we checked out without any further complications.

I thanked God for allowing her to be with us that day. I would never have gotten away with defending her like that, although the urge to do so was there.

I will forever be grateful to that little girl. I pray that my daughter will be surrounded by friends that love her like that for the rest of her life.