“It’s a dancing giraffe eating blueberries!…and I painted it!” a bright-eyed 2nd grader announced to me during class.

I couldn’t have been more impressed and asked if I could take a picture of it, to look at whenever I needed a lift.

“Sure!” he quickly replied, looking like the most giving creature on earth.

“Want to know why his face is blue?” he impatiently asked, hardly able to wait for my response.

“Yes,” I said, “why is it blue?”

And with a beauty and sincerity that is so hard to find anywhere beyond childhood, he excitedly shared, “Because I messed up and got blue on his face when I was painting the sky. But then I decided to make him even better!…by adding more blue and having him eating Blueberries!”

“Wow!” I said, “That was such a wonderful idea! I love it!!”

He seemed to inherently recognize the beauty in his act, and he walked away glowing. And he left me glowing too — because his love of life recharged my soul — and because I felt incredibly comforted knowing that he had a gift that would serve him well in this world. I just pray that he never outgrows it. But if he ever does (because it happens to the best of us), I pray that he too has a child someday remind him that all catastrophes…big and small…can be made beautiful, if you add some love and creativity.