The little girl with a big heart

I was watching Oprah today.. She discussed issues on death and pain and suffering.. In particular, there was one family who spoke about their 11 year old daughter who was killed in a car accident.. the girl had just walked out the house to take her dog for a walk and she walked out to the road from in between 2 parked cars so the driver of the oncoming vehicle didn't spot her and by the time she did, it was too late. The car hit the child and actually went over her. Her parents heard the commotion and came rushing out to see their daughter badly injured and the lady driver beside the child crying. Her dad was holding her hand and her mum was singin to her softly as the ambulance arrived to take her away.. She started losing her vision in the ambulance as her parents saw her slipping away slowly.. She died in the hospital.. It was very sad the way a very young child with so many dreams and aspirations had her entire future crushed in a second.

But there was something else about this story that was very moving.. Her parents actually came on the show to share their story, to meet with the driver of the vehicle that had snatched their daughter's life away, to let her know that it was alright.. To let her know that she didn't have to feel guilty about causing the little girl's death because to them her spirit lived on and she still lives in them till today.. To let the driver know that everything was okay, so that she could live her life guilt-free.. They told her that they knew their daughter would have wanted them to do this, to put her out of her guilt, to let her know it was alright..

And to add on to this touching story, they handed Oprah a box. It contained the little girl's savings which she had religiously put together with the purpose of helping little kids of Africa who were AIDs victims.. She had, during her short life, put together her lunch money and left over change from shopping to help these kids and had always spoken about how she wanted to do something for them. So her parents offered her savings, together with a cheque payment of ten thousand which they accumulated through donations towards a fund they had set up in their daughter's name to help these kids. The proceeds were addressed to Oprah's Angel network in Africa for kids. Oprah teared and promised she would personally see to it that these proceeds were put to good use, to fulfill the little girl's dying wish.

I was really touched and for a moment felt really ashamed. Here we are complaining that we need to get new jeans, that we need to go shopping for outfits cuz a birthday party is coming up, that we wish we had a car to drive cuz taking the public transport system is so troublesome. And then again is this little girl, half my age, having such a beautiful heart wanting to put aside whatever little she had for lunch money, hoping that it would somehow make some form of difference to other kids. It makes you wonder, how we often neglect the simple things in life and take for granted all the blessings we have and constantly yearn for more while there are people out there with nothing, nothing at all compared to the lives we lead.

It's true that her spirit lives on and she is still around like her parents said, because now through this story, I'm sure she lives in everyone who knew of her or heard of her. Her spirit stays in everyone who stops for a moment to think about the less privileged, who stop to help someone else, who stop a moment to appreciate their lives, who pause for a while to remember the little girl with a big heart.