Sometimes something is so spectacularly thoughtful or kind that it takes your breath away. When someone does something kind for one of your children, the splendor is exponentially increased. Today’s post is hereby dedicated to Ivaly and Louisa (and whatever support they had from their parents), Ella’s two best friends from Seattle, who delivered such a kindness today.

Being away from home has been understandably the hardest on Ella. She was 13 when we left, and had her entire life uprooted. On top of that, she has been the most fully immersed in French life, having been enrolled in a French school full time. As we like to say, even her math class is a “French class,” given that it’s taught in French. Ella has met all of these challenges with her usual grace and courage. Frankly, she’s an inspiration.

So imagine Ella’s joy at coming home from school for lunch today and finding a large box from Ivaly and Louisa waiting for her. The squeal of delight was incredible, punctuated by several more as she carefully opened each wrapped package inside. I had the privilege and joy of witnessing this, and snapped a few photos to commemorate the occasion. And as lovely as each gift is (my favorite being a photo of the two girls in which they’ve made their arms into the shape of a heart, the superheroes that they are), none of the gifts could top the overall importance of the thought and gesture the gifts represent.

Thank you, Ivaly and Louisa.