Back before Christmas I was invited to be part of Hayesville Elementary’s Career Day. I’ve done these sort of things before and always enjoy them.
The presenters stay in one classroom and groups of students visit each presenter and stay for about 15-20 minutes.
I was invited to speak about being a Content Creator. The students asked lots of questions and I loved seeing their bright faces and hearing the excitement in their voices.
As soon as I noticed the phrase on the wall: “IF YOU LOOK WITH KINDNESS YOU WILL ALWAYS FIND WONDER” I knew it was going to be a really good day and it was.
The little tag line set the tone for every group of students I spoke to and has been running around in my head ever since I seen it.
Last night’s video: Making Yogurt for Friends and Family in Appalachia.
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Appalachia Through My Eyes – A series of photographs from my life in Southern Appalachia.
I hear people all the time complaining about how there aren’t kind people (or enough of them anymore), but I have been seeing & being kind for many years now. Over the holiday season, I had more friendly, helpful, easy going sales clerks, store stockers, etc than ever before…By being kind, I had store clerks give me products for more % off, than advertised! I rarely deal with receptionists that are unkind, if you great them with a cheerful hello & good wishes for the rest of their day. I think, in general, you get what you give. You also see what you are looking for. If you look for rudeness, you will pick up on it, but if you look for friendliness you will see it everywhere. Now, as far as neighborliness that has definitely changed, but take it where you can get it or create it yourself. Sometimes people are too worried that they would be imposing on you, or they never even think to ask for help. My husband & I see that all the time. We are usually the neighbors ‘helping’ everyone on our street. It comes back around to us, even if the other neighbor can’t really help us with anything. they at least treat us with respect, a nice wave, not talking bad about us. Although doing a neighborly ‘good deed’ did just cost me $380! I took in a neighbor’s plants while she goes to Georgia for a few months. My cat ate the umbrella plant & they are toxic to animals (I didn’t even think of checking) and had to go to the vet. Should I send her a bill??? LOL.
That’s such a wonderful quote and I noticed another one underneath it sitting on a shelf. Work hard and be kind. That’s also another good one. It made me think back to years ago. The days of being a spring chick are long gone and the old gray mare ain’t what she used to be. And I’ve seen a lot of changes over the years with so many modern conveniences. Through these changes something valuable and precious has been lost along the way. Back when I was little and in my parents, grand and great grandparents day, there was a sense of being neighborly. If someone needed help, there would be willing hands come to do what they could. You knew if the call was put out, they were really in a hard spot because it took a lot, even swallowing a bit of pride, to ask in the first place. Now a days a lot of folks won’t give you the time of day much less throw a hand up to simply wave hi. Hard work and kindness went a long way and helping back then and meant survival of families Today so many see it as material things, relying on grocery store shelves, electric heat and propane deliveries. And I think something precious was lost in the process. I’ve watched this hollow go from houses far and few between with gardens grown to help put food on the table and get through the winter, to houses springing up and being closely built together. We had a gravel washboard road and I think it was back in 1970 that a vocational school was built on the other end of the hollow and the road got paved. It went from not hardly seeing a car go by, to people flying up and down like they’re going to a fire and all the houses going up. I truly miss that ol’ gravel road and the fellowship of neighbors we had back then. Work hard and be kind. When you meet someone with these virtues it just fills the heart to spilling over. Thanks for sparking some good memories and sharing your experience with us.
Kind of like “your” salutation tag line of “Every good wish!” My husband has had to write a couple of thank yous recently and he asked me both times “what was that salutation Tipper used, I wanna use that too.”
Love the quote! It takes so little effort to be kind to someone. Just a smile on your face can go a long way to someone who’s having a bad day. I was taught to always show kindness because you never know what folks may be going through. I just received a call this morning that a lady I had known since I was a young girl in our home church passed away. She had just turned 99 last week. What I remember most about her was she always had a smile on her face and a kind word for everyone. She will be missed.
You have me thinking. I’ll have to ponder on what kind of thinking I do my looking with. But the idea that our thoughts both direct our eyes and determine what we will see when we look is a profound one. We have probably all had the experience of looking for something with a certain expectation of how it will look, then look right at it without realizing what it is because it doesn’t match our ‘mind’s eye’.
I am NOT a big Oprah fan, but….she did say something years ago that I found to be true. She said, “that if you spot it, you got it.” The point: If you are picking up on a character flaw in another person, more than likely it is something that you struggle with yourself. You are self conscious about it or despise the trait in yourself, but it is much easier to pick on another person for having the same weakness. This is why, I think, parents that have a child just like them butt heads all the time. Usually, it is over some negative behavior that the parent also possesses. You know, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree! I have to remind myself of this from time to time, when I am being critical of someone. It boils down to being a hypocrite, and like everyone else on this planet, I suffer from the condition from time to time.
Children are such a sponge! They soak up everything they are exposed to. It’s great that you are given this opportunity to share kindness.
Great Quote!
What a great phase to have displayed and more important to teach by example. Tipper you teach by example, thank you.
This was a short and sweet post that packs so much truth! Kindness is infectious. We need more people catching it, and spreading it worldwide!! It takes a lot less mental and physical energy to be kind than it does to be rude, insensitive, or selfish. Kindness does not require any thought, it spontaneously comes from your heart. It gives no thought to what you gain from doing something nice. Kindness, compassion, joy, decency, courtesy, benevolence, smiling – I love all these words and the sheer happiness they bring!!
Donna. : )
What a beautiful expression. It sure sounds like your day was well spent there.
My wife worked at a job dealing with the public, I have seen her come home nearly in tears before because of how some of the customers acted. I firmly believe you will get treated the same way you treat the one waiting on you. If I will be kind to them they will be kind to me. She had customers that would not let anyone else but her wait on them. You can tell children things, but they need to see it demonstrated by the way you live.
I like that expression!
I so enjoy those bright young faces, eager to learn and full of questions. It’s why I keep volunteering to teach Sunday School to the elementary ages.
We’re getting bad bad storms here so I’ll sign off.
It is heartwarming to know there is a classroom that teaches children to look with kindness and find wonder! Our whole world would be much better if everyone looked for kindness! My hat is off to Hayesville Elementary School!!
Above all is love and with that goes kindness. If you do great things and give all you have but have not love, it’s all for naught. What a concept! Teach children GOOD THINGS instead of crap. It makes sense to me if we want kind adults, we must teach and DEMONSTRATE kindness to little ones. There seems to be an all out assault on children and their innocence so I’m glad to see that school doing right. I always say the measure of a person can be summed up in the way they act and treat others when NO ONE is looking (except the omnipresent Holy One.)
Good morning, Mrs. Tipper
Short and sweet phrase that packs a lot of wonder! Blessings
You and your family are very kind people and it shows by how to you treat each other and everyone around you!
We watched your video on making yogurt and like the soap making video, you make it look easy, so I’m going to try that as well. I love yogurt and the homemade version has to be better and healthier than what you can by in the store.
Have a great day!