As I was looking through my son’s third-grade work tonight, I found a discarded picture. I softly asked him, “Son, why is this picture all crumpled?” He excitedly told me that his teacher had asked them to draw themselves. My son drew himself happy on the baseball field. Then, the teacher gave a lesson more impactful than any assignment. She told them to imagine someone saying mean things about their drawings, like “That’s weird” or “I don’t like it.” Then, she told them to crumple the papers. Afterwards, they tried to smooth them out, but the creases remained. The teacher explained that words do the same thing. Hurtful words can leave marks, even after an apology. Just like the wrinkles on the paper, the damage can linger. After my son finished the story, we discussed kindness, compassion, and the power of words. This really moved me. Words are important. What you say can stay with someone forever. If an eight-year-old can grasp that, so can we. To all the teachers teaching kindness… thank you. You’re shaping hearts, not just minds. ❤️
