nero.

Anyone that knows me well has heard ALOT about a little boy by the name of Dinero... not just the (countless) stories I can share of all the ridiculous, hilarious and (sometimes) cute things he does and says, but of how much this little boy has impacted my life... Well he is on my heart today. BIG TIME. 

"Mista Caylub, tell him my name mean money!"

When I started working for the YMCA After-School Program two and a half years ago, I was placed at an inner-city school in Knoxville. The kids come mostly from single-family households with very limited income and don't have much going for them. Society has already written these little babies off, even at five years old. No one gives them any chance of making something of themselves... But after working with them for years, I know this to be far from the truth. I could write for days about all of the kids I have met through my job and how each one of them (even the "hard to love" ones) have taken a piece of my heart... but I could write for weeks about Dinero.

From the moment I met Dinero and his dad (it was his first day of Kindergarten), I knew we were going to get along just fine. Whether we were throwing the football, racing around the gym, building with Legos, dancing to The Cheetah Girls (don't judge; it was his favorite when he was 5!), working on his homework or just hanging out... our relationship grew.

Did he have behavior problems? Yep. Did it feel like pulling teeth to get him to listen to his teacher and do his work? Oh yeah. But throughout his first couple years of school, he matured ALOT. And my relationship with his dad grew as well... DeMarcus is a single father doing what he can to raise Nero right. He's young and learning but his love for his son is unconditional.

Even though I've been relocated to a different school and I don't see Nero every day, he still impacts my life. It was no coincidence that I was placed at his school so long ago at such a critical time for both of us. I still talk to his dad regularly to check on him; I visit when I can; I even attend his pee-wee football games. (They finished 2nd this year in Knox County... Go Roadrunners!) These times have been better training for parenthood than anything else I could imagine.

Do I impact Dinero and DeMarcus in a positive way? I think so. Will they continue to be a part of my life for years to come? I hope so. Has Nero taught me just as much as I have taught him? I know so.