(sadie always surprises me and leaves my phone better than she found it:))
LEAVE IT BETTER THAN YOU FOUND IT
*our family theme for the past school year*
school is ending. friday is the last day.
*sniff sniff*
i have mixed emotions. i am happy to have a summer with my kids, but time is going so fast!
it has been a good year, and as it comes to a close it makes me reflect.
my goal as a mom this year was to help my kids "leave it better than you found it"!
it all started with the house. we had a family night on leaving the house better than you found it. trying to "up" our efforts of being clean.
the idea of leaving things better than we found them, grew and grew inside my mind. i started thinking about how much the world needs
benevolence
i heard a conference talk once describe benevolence as being happy when, and wanting others to, succeed.
others' successes don't mean we are less. i feel like there is such a tendency to compare, it makes this a hard concept to grasp, but i felt a need for my little family to get it. we spent a few months when vivian was born talking about being "builder's" and so 'leaving it better' was a great follow up.
each family night was dedicated to a different 'leave it better than you found it'
week one: leaving the house 'better'--being clean and organized
week two: leaving other's better- we talked all about how to leave other's better than we find them, in our family, friends, or school. (how to build others, service, sincere compliments, being happy for others, being true friends, look around to see who needs help, saying thank you)
week three: leaving ourselves better than we found it- debating negative thoughts, confident behaviors, positive self talk, being your own #1 fan
week four: Christ leaves us better than He finds us- we discussed how Christ accepts us as we are but made it possible for us to be better.
i feel like i was prompted to expand the theme to others, ourselves and then Christ.
great family nights!
this theme was awesome for my teenage daughter learning to navigate friendships and feeling confident in herself. she responded so well and has avoided so much drama by being happy for others. by concentrating on building others, it has left her happier, and it immediately removes so many insecure behaviors!
but the good thing is, this concept is one that even my littles understand. one of the highlights of my year happened in the car last week, when i felt like this concept reached KAI!!
i picked kai and his friend up from soccer tryouts. tryouts at such a young age are difficult. kai shed a few tears the night before, fearing his efforts were not as good as he would have liked. tryouts have the tendency to bring out insecurities and comparisons.
anyway, we were driving home. kai and his friend were in the back seat and i hear them talking about their cleats. kai's friend was showing how bad his cleats were. he proceeded to show kai the sole of his cleat, which was halfway off. kai removed his new, awesome, green cleats from his feet and told his friend to try them on, which he did. his friend said how good they felt and how much he liked them. kai then said, "you can have them. they are yours. think about how great you will do at try-outs with better cleats!"
i wanted to start crying!
his friend, excitedly, asked if kai was serious and offered to pay him some money from his bank account. kai didn't want his money. he wanted his friend to have great cleats. kai said a few "building" comments about how amazing he would do with cleats that aren't broken. saying stuff like that is not an easy thing for kai- but he did it...on his own!
when his friend got out of the car and walked to his house, kai leaned out the window to take another look at his friend walking in his cleats. then he said to me kind of proud and contently, "yep, those cleats fit his personality!"
YES!
i immediately told kai that he chose to be a builder!
even though giving cleats away wasn't what i expected, it was kai's way of leaving his friend better than he found him.
kai ordered new cleats with his own money.
i was so proud of him.
i couldn't have asked for a better ending to the school year!!
(vivan making her own fun at soccer evaluation day)
