When you’re eleven-years-old, the little stuff matters, like having your hair look nice.
After Isabella Pieri lost her mother to a rare illness two years ago, the little girl learned to be self-sufficient in many ways. Her father, Philip Pieri, does his best to be both a father and a mother to his kids, but he admits that doing Isabella’s hair was one duty he never got the hang of.
In fact, right after his wife’s death, he even gave Isabella a buzz cut because he couldn’t deal with caring for it.
Facebook
“I originally just gave her a crew cut because I didn’t know how, and it was all tangled and I couldn’t get it out for anything,”Philip admitted.
Facebook
Since Philip leaves for work very early every day, Isabella is on her own in the mornings. She’s gotten good at getting herself up and out the door in time to get to school, but she was still stumped about what to do with her now-shoulder-length brown hair. The fifth grader eventually just started putting her hair into a basic ponytail.
Facebook
One day, Isabella was riding on her school bus when she noticed a classmate approaching the driver, Tracey Dean, for help doing her hair. Mustering her courage, Isabella worked up the nerve to ask Tracey for help as well, and now Isabella has gotten so much more than hair help from Tracey.
She ended up receiving the kind of mothering that she’d been sorely lacking for the past two years.
Facebook
“You can’t be shy, you’ve got to talk to them,” Tracey says of the kids who ride her bus. “You treat them like your own kids, you know.”
Facebook
Now, Isabella stays behind after Tracey parks the bus in the school parking lot, hair brush and bobbles in hand. Tracey braids her hair almost every morning, and this small act of tenderness has meant the world to Isabella.
“It makes me feel like she’s a mom pretty much to me,”Isabella said. “And it makes me excited for the next day to see what she does.â€
Facebook
Philip says he couldn’t be more grateful to Tracey for stepping up to help his daughter. Wiping away tears from his eyes, he stated, “Tracy didn’t have to step up, but she stepped up to help out, I was amazed.”
Facebook
Isabella’s teachers say that having her hair done gives her a much-needed confidence boost each day, and they’re noticing a shift in her attitude these days. “I just noticed her head was a little higher that morning,”said her teacher, Mrs. Freeze, “and she had a little more of a step.â€
Tracey explained that as a mom and breast cancer survivor herself, she is especially happy to be able to help a child like Isabella.
“Seven years ago, I found out I had breast cancer, and that’s one of the things that went through my head – who is going to take care of my little ones? Not that my husband couldn’t do it, but you know, that’s what mom’s do. They do their kids’ hair.â€
Facebook
Tracey is a living example of the old saying, “it takes a village to raise a child.” She’s also a great example to us all, and we should all aspire to treat all children as we would treat our own.
Learn more about this moving story below, and be sure to share to spread the love even further.
Want to be happier in just 5 minutes a day? Sign up for Morning Smile and join over 455,000+ people who start each day with good news.