All kids kid deserve encouragement when chasing their dreams, especially young girls interested in activities traditionally dominated by boys. Jeanean Thomas, a firefighter and mother, took to her X handle, @JeaneanThomas, to share a heartwarming experience she had when taking her young daughter skateboarding for the first time.
Representative Image Source: Pexels | Joao Pedro Lisboa
Initially, Thomas felt uneasy about the skate park, as she and her daughter found it filled mostly with teenage boys who were smoking and swearing. "My daughter has been wanting to skateboard for months. I had to convince her that skateboarding wasn't just for boys. So when we walked up to the skate park and saw that it was full of teenage boys who were smoking and swearing she immediately wanted to turn around and go home," Thomas explained in her post.
Wanting to set a positive example, Thomas insisted to her daughter that the skate park was open to everyone, despite feeling nervous herself. She encouraged her daughter to try, despite the challenging environment. Thomas wrote, "She proceeded to go down the ramp despite you and your friends flying past her and grinding rails beside her. She only had two or three runs in before you approached her and said, 'Hey, excuse me.'"
Expecting to step in and defend her daughter's right to use the skate park, Thomas was prepared to remind the teenage boy firmly of the park's accessibility to everyone. However, she never needed to use her "mom voice," as the teen's words surprised her completely:
"I heard you say, 'Your feet are all wrong. Can I help you?' You proceeded to spend almost an hour with my daughter showing her how to balance and steer and she listened to you," Thomas shared.
Thomas was touched by how the teenager patiently guided her daughter, especially when she fell. She noted, "I even heard you tell her to stay away from the rails so that she wouldn't get hurt. I want you to know that I am proud that you are part of my community and I want to thank you for being kind to my daughter. Even though your friends made fun of you for it, she left with a sense of pride and with the confidence that she can do anything, (all) because of you."
The heartwarming story resonated widely online, prompting many positive reactions from social media users. @InSrchofLiberty commented, "Lovely story, but you should go back and tell him directly. He probably won't see it on X." User @ms_ashleybrown celebrated the girl's experience, writing, "I'm so glad she left with a sense of pride. Girls can do anything they want and be anything they want to be. Proud of her!" Another user, @OwaTajerQR, addressed negativity online by stating, "Wow. I can't believe the insensitivity of those with nothing but negative comments on this story. Glad the boy was sensitive."
Arthur Duncan performed on the Lawrence Welk Show and the Betty White show. Public Domain
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