Ellie cried when she couldn’t wear a costume to school for Halloween one year. No one cared except for one kind teacher, who was about to become more important in her life and heart.
Even though it was Ellie’s favorite day of school, she hoped no one would see her.
Children dressed in different shapes and colors of spook and wonder were all over the school auditorium. Some people walked in as princes and princesses, some glided in as vampires and superheroes, and some made big entrances as astronauts and historical figures.
But one little girl walked in with her shoulders hunched and her face covered, hoping no one would notice her gray pants and white T-shirt.
Ellie wanted to be a princess for Halloween that year. “I promise your costume will get a lot of attention!” A few months ago, Ellie’s dad told her that. But you know how busy dads are and that they sometimes forget the little things that are important while they are taking care of the big things that are important.
So Ellie wasn’t mad at her dad when he forgot to save money for her princess costume for the school Halloween party that year. But when the mean kids in her class made fun of her, she couldn’t hold back the tears of fear.
“What should you be dressed as?” Ellie?” One of the boys laughed and looked disgusted as he held up the end of Ellie’s ponytail.
Ellie put her hands over her ears and cried when she heard the other kids laughing and chanting her new name. Only one person around her was kind and cared about her sadness.
So Ellie wasn’t mad at her dad when he forgot to save money for her princess costume for the school Halloween party that year. But when the mean kids in her class made fun of her, she couldn’t hold back the tears of fear.
“What should you be dressed as?” Ellie?” One of the boys laughed and looked disgusted as he held up the end of Ellie’s ponytail.
Ellie put her hands over her ears and cried when she heard the other kids laughing and chanting her new name. Only one person around her was kind and cared about her sadness.
“Why do you have that?” Ellie scratched her head and asked.
“This? It’s for your costume for Halloween. And it will be the best Halloween costume ever!” Mr. Borges looked as happy as a kid.
Ellie just stood there like a statue, not knowing what to do. At the same time, her teacher started wrapping toilet paper around her waist and up toward her neck, checking every few seconds to make sure she was comfortable. Then he started wrapping the toilet paper around her stomach, legs, arms, and even her tiny fingers and toes.
“Woah, Mr. Borges!” Ellie was finally beginning to get the idea for the great costume. “I look like a—”
“Wait a minute. Don’t let your mind wander. There’s one more thing…” the man said as he wrapped the last few rolls of tissue around and across her face, leaving just enough space for her eyes, nose, and lips.
“NOW,” Mr. Borges said, splattering red ink all over the wrapped roll of toilet paper. “It’s ready!”
The impact of a teacher lasts a lifetime.
Ellie couldn’t stop jumping up and down and clapping her papery hands when she saw herself in the mirror. “It’s great! Mr. Borges, I love it. Thank you!”
Ellie gave her hero a big hug and gave him a small kiss on the cheek.
When she walked back into the group of excited kids, they put their hands over their mouths so they couldn’t laugh.
Mr. Borges may have just thought it was a creative way to cheer up a sad child, but to Ellie, it meant the world. No one at school had ever been that nice to her before. Mr. Borges was the first person in a place where she had only been laughed at or ignored to notice her and help her.
Ellie would do anything to stay close to Mr. Borges, the kind adult. She became more interested in art, which helped her heart feel better over time.
Mr. Borges also went out of his way to help the little girl who lived alone with her always sick father. Mr. Borges was the person Ellie could talk to about her biggest fears and hopes.
And when Ellie’s beloved father died after a long and hard fight with an illness, Mr. Borges was the only person who could stop the orphaned girl from screaming and crying at the funeral.
He made a promise to the dead girl’s father as he held her hand: “She will have everything you wanted for her. I promise!”
No one knew this about Mr. Borges, but he had been through terrible tragedies himself. He never had the courage to dream of having a family again after losing the woman he loved while she was pregnant.
“My little daughter would have been just like her!” As he watched Ellie laugh and cry, Mr. Borges often thought to himself.
Taking care of Ellie wasn’t just a promise he had to keep; it was a goal that gave the tired man a sense of purpose, joy, and childlike eagerness.
Ellie lived with her grandmother and was supposed to be taken care of by her. But Mr. Borges filled the role of her guardian, father figure, and hero.
He made a promise to the dead girl’s father as he held her hand: “She will have everything you wanted for her. I promise!”
Years went by, and Ellie got through each grade with the help and love of Mr. Borges. She did well in high school and won a scholarship to one of the best colleges in the country.
It had been seven years since Mr. Borges waved goodbye to Ellie with tears in his eyes as she left for a new city and a new life as a college student…
“I wonder how she is doing…” Mr. Borges was sitting alone in his house in front of a cup of coffee he had forgotten to drink.
He often thought about Ellie and felt bad that he hadn’t done more to stay in touch with her. When he heard a knock on the door and saw a box on his doorstep, he wondered, “Does she remember me?”
He opened it and found a three-piece suit that looked expensive and was neatly packed. The man thought, “Someone went to the wrong house,” and started to put the suit back in its bag when an envelope fell out of one of its pockets.
It was a beautiful invitation to a wedding, and the name of the bride surprised him. “Ellie, who wouldn’t let go of my hand when she was little, is getting married! The older man thought, “She’s gotten so big!” as tears came to his eyes.
That wasn’t all, though. On the back of the invitation card was a note, and Mr. Borges could tell right away that it was written in Ellie’s beautiful cursive handwriting.
