Happy Sunday Everyone:
We have 2 boys, Jack and Thomas. Jack is 14, Thomas 12. As you might imagine we love both of them unconditionally. Jack is physically beautiful, does well in school, naturally athletic…one might say “the whole package”. Thomas, who will kill me if he finds about this email, takes after his dad…might be “slightly” chubby, love handles, Might have to try a little harder on the field, run a little slower, and recently we found out he has to work harder in school because of how his brain processes information. That doesn’t make him good, bad, more, less, than his brother, but bottom line is not everything comes naturally to him, or is easy for him. With that said, he brings more joy to me than anyone, when I see him I smile…he just has that thing about him. Just wanted to give you some context although not the point of this Sunday Thoughts. Point is this; you can make someone’s day everyday with your words, and we need to remember that, and act on it more. Last week, Kim received the following email from one of his teachers. Keep in mind, public schools, this didn’t need to be done, this woman simply made a choice. “Mrs. Marckwardt, I just wanted to tell you that you have such a wonderful, thoughtful, hardworking son! Thomas brings a smile to my face every single day! He is just such a great kid! Thomas works hard in core every day and when he doesn’t understand something he comes and ask questions. Thomas is friends with all the kids in class and he goes out of his way to make people feel welcome! You and your husband have done such an amazing job raising a well-rounded kid! Thank you!”….Every time I read it, I cry. This woman made my year, may have made my life. She doesn’t know behind the scenes, she doesn’t know everything Thomas works through, yet she identified something special in him and she chose to share it with us. She could just smile at him and think to herself “I like that kid”, but instead she chose to let us know in her words how she felt about our boy. We all have the opportunity to validate others efforts, to give people confirmation they’re on the right track, to simply recognize ones efforts. Words are powerful things. We need to use them more to lift people up. Just try it, I believe you’ll see for yourself.
On a side note-I had to share a small portion of my five year vision as it relates to my boys. If you every needed a more clear example of why we write out a five year vision, and do our best to live to it, I can’t imagine you’ll see anything closer than his teachers comments and what I wrote.
Jack and Thomas are amazing. They continue to grow into the men we had hoped they’d become. They’re not perfect by any stretch but they make us proud. Our efforts over the last 5 years to continue to guide them in faith, in being fine young men, respecting women, respecting their education, respecting work, and the understanding that “some” goal setting is better than no goal setting, has paid dividends. Jack is half way through his first year of college and Thomas is half way through his junior year Jack’s confidence is at an all-time high, he’s more out of his comfort zone than he’s ever been. He finally realized in high school what kind of an athlete he actually was and how smart he could be if he applied himself and got out of his own way. Also turns out that by supporting him vs. critiquing him has helped a ton too. Thomas loves life more than any human I know. He has to work harder than other kids for the same rewards but this has caused him to appreciate it all more. The world is now seeing what people close to him have seen all along, he’s nothing short of awesome. I think the biggest key has been teaching the boys to be proud of themselves, to stand up for themselves, and to stand up for others. They make their own decisions, they have their own opinions and they trust themselves.
Have a great week ahead!!