Some things I hear every day:
“Don’t touch me!”
“STOP!”
“Mom, he’s doing…”
“But it’s not mine!”
“That’s mine!”
“MINE!!!”
“Who’s mine is it anyway?”
What I try to remember—and remind them of—is simple: Practice Kindness.
Practice, because kindness doesn’t come naturally. What comes naturally is looking out for mine. Wanting my version of fairness. Demanding that others follow the rules.
But in the middle of it all, I tell my kids—let’s practice kindness.
Every now and then at suppertime, I’ll have the boys go around the table and say one thing they like about their brothers. This is not a “thorns and roses” thing—but just say one thing. Sometimes it’s “I like your shirt” (when they’re wearing their brother’s shirt), or “I like how you didn’t annoy me today.” But we sit and wait and keep going until they find something genuinely kind.
We do not live in a Disney teen sitcom. Not every statement needs to end with a zinger (even if it’s hilarious). It’s okay—more than okay—to build up the people we love.
“Encourage one another and build each other up … Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always strive to do what is good for each other and for everyone else.”
— 1 Thessalonians 5:11, 15
Practice Kindness. Every day.
#LiveGolden
Ramblings from That Guy 