"A Letter to Amy"

One of the most beloved children's books in our home library is called "A Letter to Amy" by Ezra Jack Keats.

In just a handful of pages, Keats paints a crystal-clear picture of a stormy afternoon, a birthday party in the making and a little boy who is feeling out the social awkwardness of inviting his best friend, who happens to be a little girl, to his all-boys party.

At the end of the book, the main character, Peter, is getting ready to blow out his candles, having given up hope that his best friend, Amy, will show up to the party.

At the urging of his guy pals, Peter reluctantly decides to give up on Amy and asks his mom to bring out the cake. Just as the guests are about to pipe up with the "Happy Birthday" song, Amy arrives and we all feel happy for Peter.

Henry loves this book because there's a little dog who follows the main character through the pages and he likes to point him out in each scene.

Calvin loves the story, too, but for a much more sophisticated reason. Calvin gets the message. Here's what I mean:

A few months before we moved away from California, Calvin made a close friend named Brooke. The two just clicked. Brooke is fun and athletic and being a year older than Calvin, she made a pretty good stand-in big sister when he needed guidance in their weekly cooking class.

Since our move last summer, Calvin has made a lot of acquaintances, but he's still hunting for a new best pal -- someone like Brooke.

It's hard for Calvin. He's very likeable, but he's a bit of an old soul. He isn't your typical rambunctious preschool boy. He's rough and tumble, but also tenderhearted and thoughtful. It's a tricky combination at his age.

Often, during our dinnertime prayer, Calvin asks God to help him find a new friend -- not one of his sister's friends -- but his very own buddy.

One night this week, while Calvin sat on the sidelines at his big sister's basketball practice, I watched him chat the hour away with a little girl about his age. They sat on top of basketballs and appeared to be telling great stories to one another until practice was over.

As we put on our coats to leave, I asked Calvin if he had met a new friend. He said he had and that her name was Brooklyn and maybe I could talk to her mom about setting up a playdate for the two of them.

We passed Brooklyn on our way out of the gym and I heard her mom ask: "Is that Calvin there?"

The little girl had told her mom about her new friend, too.

Maybe this basketball buddy will fit the bill. Or perhaps she'll just be someone to talk to while Calvin waits for the end of basketball practice. Time will tell.

"A Letter to Amy" ends with Peter blowing out his birthday candles and making a secret wish. We're left to speculate what he might have wished for. A truck filled with ice cream? A candy store filled with candy and no stomach ache?

Calvin loves this part of the story. He always grins when he confidently asserts what he knows Peter's secret wish to be. And you can tell he warms a little inside when he says: "He's wishing that Amy will always be his special friend."

He gets it. And while Calvin doesn't relate this story to his own quest for a good friend, I think that is the very reason he understands it so well. This is Calvin's secret wish, too.