Most parents will agree that when a baby hits toddler age, they somehow become even cuter than before.
When toddlers begin to develop their own personalities, they pick up all sorts of adorable little hobbies and mannerisms.
Here’s where you’ll discover that your baby loves making mud pies, is obsessed with her ballet dress, or refuses to drink out of anything other than his green sippy cup.
One Plano toddler had an obsession that was pretty unique: trash collection.
That’s right: two-year-old Lance Rufus might just have the most environmentally-friendly hobby in the world.
The little boy is obsessed with collecting trash, and heads out every morning in full gear to leave his mini recycling bin at the curb.
Every toddler has a hero, even if it’s just mom or dad.
Lance’s hero, however, is someone outside of the family: James Jackson the local trash man.
Lance and James are now fast friends. It all started nearly two years ago, when the Rufus family moved to the area.
Very quickly, Lance formed an obsession with the garbage truck.
It was loud, noisy, and useful – everything a little boy would love. Lance thought that the men that collected the trash, who got to work such an important job, were the coolest people on earth.
Lance’s mom Chantal Rufus said that her son is always ready for garbage time.
Sharing her story with CBSDFW, she said:
“It’s like, Lance is eating breakfast, he hears it, he stops and says, ‘Garbage truck!’ We have to get him out of the high chair and run to the back. I really love it.”
Toddlers love familiarity, which is probably why Lance has become so obsessed with the weekly garbage.
Developmentally, toddler obsessions like this are a good thing, as the little routines they form give them a sense of order and a frame of reference.
Kids see things from a different perspective, so when Lance wears his garbage man outfit, he probably thinks that he actually is a garbage man.
By pretending, toddlers get to express themselves, which can help them to release their pent-up energy.
It’s pretty cute that, of all the superheroes and TV characters in the world, Lance’s favorite “celebrity” is closer to home.
Jackson, Lance’s biggest inspiration, finds it cute too. He said:
“It makes it sweet when you see someone who really likes what you do.”
On Halloween, the opportunity for really expressing yourself, it was only natural that Lance’s parents dressed him as Jackson.
The friendship between the little boy and the garbage man is warming hearts around the world.
It’s a reminder to all of us that friendships cost nothing. In a time when communities need to pull together more than ever, little Lance shows us how to do it.
People who commented beneath the video agreed, with one person writing:
“Love theses kind of stories… Love have no color or barrier’s.”
Very true! Another person added:
“Without garbage men, the world would sink in chaos. great guys.”
We agree. Garbage men are still subject to stereotypes even today, and we often forget just how important they are.
But an innocent 2-year-old can see exactly how necessary these guys are for maintaining order in our lives.
You can watch the adorable video of Lance meeting up with his best buddy just below.
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