School Crushes

Since Ceilidh has started school, she has come home every night full of stories about what she's done that day, and the friends she's played with at school. We noticed, however, that all of the friends she mentions are boys. A bit concerning for Daddy, who asked if she had any friends that were girls. Ceilidh said she did indeed have girls who were her friends too. When asked what their names were, Ceilidh suddenly couldn't remember any of their names. Given that her older sibling Devlin is her closest playmate (when they're not fighting), I can see why she would feel more comfortable playing with boys. Still, we did ask the teacher if Ceilidh got along with the girls in the class. We were reassured that Ceilidh got along with everyone, and in fact, played with the girls in the senior kindergarten class.
One evening, I found Ceilidh rummaging through the craft supply bin at home. She took some pipe cleaners and twisted them around and proclaimed it was a gift for her friend, Joseph Thomas. A boy? Yes, but Ceilidh was adamant in stating Joseph Thomas was only a friend, nothing more.
But in watching Ceilidh carefully pack away the pipe cleaner craft for Joseph Thomas, it brought back memories of Devlin's first crush on a girl. He was only in junior kindergarten, and one evening, he asked me to help him write a letter. He had a piece of paper and a pencil in his hand and wanted to know how to spell the words, "I  love you". While spelling out the words, I felt touched that my four year old son was writing me a note. I was crushed, when he then asked me how to spell "Dear Paige". Taken aback, I spelled the name out, and then queried about this "Paige". "A girl in my class," was the nonchalant response.
While I had heard many recounts of Zubair, Ivan, Ashar, Simone, Sherry, Aliyah, I had never heard the name Paige before that moment. I rushed to my file and reviewed the class list. No Paige was listed. I retrieved the class picture and asked Devlin to point out Paige, and he replied she was absent that day. Devlin then carefully folded the note and asked me to put in his school bag for the next day. I did as he asked but was then debated the wisdom of my actions. Should I remove the note when he goes to sleep? But what if he discovers it missing at school, and becomes upset with me for kiboshing his romantic overtures? Then again, what if he proffers the note to Paige, and she turns it down? Or worse, laughs at him? Then again, can a kindergarten student read? What to do? And isn't he a bit young to have a crush on a girl?
Speaking with my husband made it worse. He chuckled at his young son's Romeo tendencies and then recalled having his first crush when he was 6! Yikes! I guess the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.
In the end, I left the note in his backpack. I remember walking him to school and asking him to point out Paige, but she wasn't in the school yard. When I checked his backpack at the end of the day, the letter was still there. I gently asked him if he had given the note to Paige, wondering if she had given it back to him in a cruel manner that only little girls can execute. Nope. She hadn't been at school that day.
Over the weeks, this Paige girl was quite elusive. She was never there in the school yard when I dropped off Devlin. I didn't approach the teacher, lest I appeared to be overly protective or obsessive. My husband and I wondered if Paige was an "older woman". Perhaps she was a reading buddy or a volunteer?
That year, we had booked a cruise vacation for the week of Valentine's Day. Since he was going to miss exchanging Valentines, Devlin and I prepared his cards ahead of time and left them with his teacher. While he was content to give his classmates Batman Valentines, he wanted a special princess card for Paige. When I suggested he give princess cards to all the girls, he insisted on picking out the biggest princess valentine for Paige and laboriously signed it himself. I'm not sure if there was a reciprocal card from her, or if it was as nice. Surely, if he did receive one, it didn't possess the thoughtfulness that Devlin's Valentine to her did. Junior kindergarten ended, and Paige was not mentioned again. When we asked him whether or not she was in his senior kindergarten class, he indicated she might have moved. So, we're still left wondering if Paige was indeed a kindergarten peer, or an older student, or perhaps, an "imaginary" friend.