Messages with Love

This morning I promise myself to be patient and loving. I will not yell.  I want a peaceful home. I will not yell.  Two minutes pass, and chaos surrounds me.  Kids want this, and husband needs that. I just smile. 

I am armed with ammunition of love.  When faced with challenges of lost shoes or siblings arguing, I say nothing.  Instead, I give a heart.  Shooting a heart may be more appropriate in a house of boys, but there are enough projectiles flying around.  On the heart is the message, whatever the message needs to be.  The recipient reads it, thanks me kindly for the reminder, and we both move on.  Tranquility…

Reality is different.  If I give my kids candy hearts, they’d be on a sugar high.  They’d also learn quickly to misbehave so they could get candy.  However, this idea of candy hearts may not be all bad for me.  It’d remind me to speak with love, to ensure whatever I say is spoken to encourage or teach.  It could remind me to address just that issue and not drone on.  Too often, I yell at those I love dearly.  I react instantly instead of taking a moment to think.  A message on a heart from me reminds me to speak from the heart—with love and make that my reality.

Shadowing Nick: New Routines

I watch Nick as he learns to maneuver the campus.

Nick has started his second semester at the local community college.  He's taking classes on two different campuses.  He is somewhat nervous.  His schedule has changed, so he needs to establish new habits and routines.

We start with an introduction and rehearsal.  Nick has a print out of a map.  We visit each campus, pointing out landmarks.  We find his classrooms and write down what days and times he will be in that classroom.  We then find the closest bathrooms and drinking fountain.

A few days later, we visit the campus again, but he leads.  He finds the location.  I shadow him.  If he gets lost, I follow.  If he gets discouraged, he calls me.  I try to point out landmarks if necessary until he can find the classroom.

We may do this exercise a few times.  Once he is comfortable, I then drop him off and find a place to sit on campus.  He maneuvers his way independently.  I am still close if he needs me, but I am not following.

Eventually, he will be able to follow the new schedule on his own.  He learns it much quicker than he did in high school.  However, Nick still experiences anxiety and stress.  Ironically, no matter where his classes are, he learns where the local coffee joint is.  He can chill with coffee anytime!