I recently liked and shared a Facebook post that was a fun idea for kids for Valentine’s Day. Starting on February 1st, tape a different colored paper heart to your child’s bedroom door every day for 14 days. On each heart, write something you love about your child. By Valentine’s Day on February 14th, your child will have a door full of hearts and of love.
Obviously, this same idea could be adapted for a spouse, a sibling, a grandparent, a boyfriend/girlfriend, a friend, a roommate, or whomever you want to feel loved. You can’t underestimate what that kind of effort does for another’s soul.
Any totally selfless act with the goal and purpose of simply making another person feel special is a wonderful thing. And, this kind of endeavor doesn’t have to be saved just for the holidays.
This past week I received a lovely card from the mother of my friend, Karen. Karen and I were best friends from middle school through high school and sadly, she passed from a heart condition four years ago. I’ve kept in touch with her parents and see them whenever I visit my home state of Indiana.
I had written a note in their Christmas card and Karen’s mom was writing back to say she was thinking of me and to tell me how wonderful it is that I am a grandmother now. It was so nice to receive her note out of the blue in the middle of January for no reason other than because she cares about me.
I have a loving and rather mischievous son who as a small boy began leaving sweet love notes on my pillow for me to find at night. He would draw a heart and write “I love you mama” inside the lines. It would warm my heart to find those notes right before I went to sleep.
As he grew into a young teenager, those notes became rubber snakes or insects left under my pillow or little alligators in my shower. To this day, I hate having alligators in my shower!
Sometimes I would open the refrigerator or the microwave and find a cluster of rubber frogs. One morning, a rubber lizard was on my coffee pot. I could only imagine the fun my son had plotting ways to make his mama scream.
One memorable day when he was in high school, I went outside to get into my car and found the interior of it covered in rubber lobsters…on my seat, on the steering wheel, in the back window, in the center section, seat belted in the passenger seat, in the glove box…
Once my startled screaming stopped, I would smile and know that he was just showing his love in a teenage boy kind of way.
After he left for college, I didn’t scream as often, but I sure did miss those fun moments that he brought to my life. One day, I opened the mailbox and found a padded envelope he had sent from his college in another state. Yep, you guessed it…along with a note thanking me for all I did for him, was a cluster of rubber monsters to let me know the fun wasn’t over yet!
Not everyone shows their love with rubber critters. My husband knows that I have a knack for getting knots in my jewelry. Recently, he took the knots out of my favorite necklace without my knowledge and left it beside my sink in the shape of a heart. Not only did it make me happy that I could wear my necklace again, but he made me feel special too!
Our efforts to make other people feel special don’t have to cost money. They can be a “hello and how are you today” to a neighbor or a co-worker, a text letting a family member or friend know you are thinking of them, or a phone call telling someone you just needed to hear their voice.
The good connections we have with others are often what make a positive difference in our days…and in theirs. So, who makes you feel special and what are you going to do to make someone else feel special this week?