Florence Ann Romano has worked as a babysitter since she was 12, for several families. But no story impressed her more than this story:
“I started taking babysitting jobs for family friends when I was only 12 years old. Among them was a family that had a little girl only a few years younger than me. They lived in a very beautiful and luxurious house, with marble floors and expensive black wood furniture, I really liked going to their house. The parents were very loving with the girl and were very polite.
They cared a lot about their child’s education and always told me how to help her when she did her homework or how much time she should devote to repeating her lessons. They were very kind and understanding even when Anita happened to take a lower grade. It never crossed my mind that this wonderful couple could do something that would affect the little girl or put a lot of pressure on her, even though they were part of a very competitive world, where the school she attended or her grades were important.
It had been 5 years since I had worked for that family when one day, I happened to hear Anita vomiting in one of the bathrooms. I knocked lightly on the door and entered, very panicked, to see what was happening. I saw her on her knees in front of the toilet, tears streaming down her cheeks. She was white as a ghost, my heart stood still when I saw her in such a state. I sat down next to her and told her as gently as I could, “What happened, my love?” He looked at me shyly and said, trembling, “I can’t do this.”
I felt my heart will break when I heard it! I sat next to her and let her tell me everything she hadn’t been able to tell me in the five years I’ve been helping her with her lessons almost every day.
Although she was an exceptional student, it seems that the poor girl felt very bad because she can’t always keep up with her classmates. She felt that she was disappointing her parents. In addition, she was about to finish high school the following year and was afraid that she would not be able to enter a good enough high school.
I encouraged her to talk openly with her parents and told her that she was extraordinarily intelligent and wonderful and that she had nothing to worry about. I don’t think I’ve ever felt so close to anyone before, it was really touching.
A few days later, when she assured me she was ready, we went to her parents together and discussed her fears. Just as I expected, the parents were very surprised to learn that their daughter feels this way, but they were very open and positive and assured her that their love is not conditioned by her grades in school or her academic progress, but that they want her to attend a good high school in order to have a better chance at a fulfilled life and a good job.
I worked in that house until I was 22, but I kept in touch with Anita. I am proud of the woman who became, she works at a bank, but has plans to open her own business. ”