Kindness is cool.
"However you wish to be treated by others is how you should treat everyone else." - Luke 6:31
KAE saw this story and could not help but smile. It is stories like these that fuel our strong belief in "kindness above everything". For everyone. Always and in ALL ways.
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A few weeks ago, when I picked up my seven-year-old boy from school, he jumped in the car, and before I could ask him anything, he excitedly blurted out: . “Mum, I gave my lunch money change to a Kindy (prep) boy!” . He was so excited, the story burst from his lips and filled the car with energy. But somehow, I missed the point. . “You WHAT?” I replied. “Dude, I need that money for your jar of savings! What did you do that for?!” . I was less than impressed (probably because I took money from his jar of savings to pay for his lunch order #mumlife). And he could tell. . Tears welled in his eyes… He sat silent for a moment considering my response and his intentions. Then, he turned to me as I was turning out of the school car park and said, . “Mum, you always tell us how important it is to be kind! That kindness matters more than anything! I thought I was doing the right thing!” . The tears started to fall. He was confused and upset. . And still, I didn't get what was going on. . “Sam… Did the kid make you give him your change?!” (Yep… I kept going lower). . “Are you mad mum? Are you mad that I was kind?” He demanded to know. . Then it hit me. I think it had been all along, but I was too cranky, self-involved, and preoccupied to see it. . Jesse and I tell our kids that more important than scoring well in reports and tests, more important than awards and ribbons, more important than popularity and fortune, is kindness. And if at the end of the day, they have given of themselves, tried their best, and have been kind, they're heroes through and through. . That day, I was too caught up in money (for god's sake Liz, it was 50 cents! CHILL THE HECK OUT); too stressed and anxious about my to do list; too preoccupied with what we needed, to notice that my kid, my seven-year-old wonder, was being a hero. . So I did what all (wannabe, try hard) good parents do. . I apologized. . I told him I was wrong and he was right. And that I was proud of his fierce, kind heart.
Kindness IS cool. More than that, it is powerful. It changes lives. If we can grasp and champion kindness over winning; then maybe our kids will catch onto it, too, and take it into adulthood… and then who knows how far my seven-year-old's 50 cents will go. . Written by @Lizzy.Milani via @pocketfuel.
KAE
