Eliot has always been friendly. Thinking back when he was two, I can still picture my blond toddler walking into a group of grown men who were settling in for a deacon's meeting. Left hand in his jean pocket, he stopped in front of each man to offer his right. Seeming not to notice he wasn't a grown man, he circled the room, shaking hands while chatting incoherently. Present day, he has been known to saunter onto an elevator and loudly exclaim to the lucky inhabitants whose heads are down hoping not to make eye contact, "How's everybody doing today?"
On icy mornings in Cary, NC, Eliot would quickly dress as soon as he woke up. "I have to go get the paper from Mrs. Marjory's driveway or she'll try to get it herself." At the age of seven he was very concerned his elderly friend would attempt to make her way down icy steps. We had this sweet elderly neighbor for a few short years before she tragically died in a car accident. I took a heart broken Eliot to her memorial service. During the share time in a room full of seated adults he didn't know, Eliot stood up and verbalized a picture of his unique friendship with their beloved Marjory. He reminisced to her family and friends how he and the elderly lady would work together to blow leaves off her back deck. He relived how for hours he and Mrs. Marjory looked through all his baseball cards. He would talk, she would listen. I'll never forget how he wrapped up his little speech to the sea of tear filled faces, "She left me, but I'll never leave her." I'll also never forget how he wept in the parking lot after the service. He was ten.
Fast forward to the dreaded years of middle school. We will forever be grateful to God for the boys in our neighborhood. Specifically the Voyles boys that created an Eliot sandwich in age and grade. That posse tromped through the woods behind our houses, lighting fires, climbing trees and doing various activities of potential harm that now tend to trickle out in elaborate story telling around the dinner table. They had a pact, if any of them did stepped outta line, the others were allowed to tell parents. A time or two I have told Eliot, "If you can't tell Will or Coby about it then you probably shouldn't be doing it". How many kids have that type of tangible barometer for judging whether they have a good idea or are about to do something completely insane?
Eliot LOVES being a part of a team. Eliot played JV Football in sixth grade, grabbing ankles and recovering fumbles. For Varsity games he ran on the field to collect the kicking tee...every...single...time. Seventh and Eighth grade, he was the backup QB. Most games, he would come in once the starting QB gained a solid lead. He was small but he worked hard. He could barely see over the line of scrimmage, but he listened well, remembered the plays and we all loved it. He played baseball too, causing my heart to double in size. The one game that sticks out in my mind, Eliot saw zero minutes on the baseball field. But you could hear him in the dugout cheering on his teammates during every pitch. He helped his coaches talk through positioning suggestions for the outfield. After this particular game, Eliot asked if we could stay a few minutes late so he could run poles with the pitcher. "Running poles must be so boring, if I run with him it'll be more fun." On awards day, Coach Warren said, "Eliot would run through a brick wall if I asked him to." He was 13.
There was also a wrestling career but I try not to remember anything involving a singlet. We'll just let that go.
High school brought rock climbing, cross country, chorus and musicals into Eliot's world. He hates running but has loved his cross country teammates. For three years in a row he received significant leadership awards. In chorus, Eliot has had little time in the spot light. His name has been listed under titles like ensemble, townspeople, tree #1, and Lurch in the Adams Family (he grunted like a pro). It's been very common in the theater at Ridgeland High School to find him building sets, hanging lights, and behind the scenes in the sound booth. This year, all that hard work paid off and he was cast as Topher in the broadway musical Cinderella. After the last show, the director singled out Eliot and his friend Bekah who went above and beyond to make the show a huge success. I'm as proud of his off stage leadership as I am his onstage performance.
Junior year Eliot tried out for Georgia's All State Chorus and didn't make the cut. Senior year, he took this last chance for a spot in the elite choir. A few weeks ago, he had the amazing opportunity to travel to Athens and sing with Georgia's best of the best.
Plain and simple, Eliot is the hardest worker I know. He may not always be the best or the biggest, but he works harder than most in order to accomplish his goals. Equally astounding to me is his capacity to care. He rushes to those who are hurting or in need of help. He rarely stops to calculate what it will cost him, the time it will take, or the inconvenience it will involve. He just jumps in with whatever emotion, strength, brain power he has to offer, feeling a deep sense of self imposed responsibility.
What I want Eliot to do more than anything else is continue being an even better version of who he has always been: kind, caring, determined, hardworking, loving, uncomfortably friendly (especially on elevators), and overwhelmingly compassionate.
I love you LT. You make this Mama so proud.
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