THE POWER OF ONE
After an intense round of UNO tonight, my 9 year old daughter told me I should write a post about the game. I asked her what it should say, and she said the message should be to not let something small block your way. Although I love that she had a great moral, her desire for me to write a post made me think of the impact our actions have on others.
I absolutely love that she enjoys my posts and wants me to write more. I especially love that she instantly began to view the world with ideas of how to communicate a positive message.
The title of this blog comes from my time as a teacher at Moravia Middle School in Moravia, New York. This small Title I School places a huge emphasis on the impact one person can have on the world, and the theme for the 8th grade year is “The Power of One.”
This is a wonderful lesson for students, but it is something I occasionally need a refresher course in as well. Sometimes I forget how much my words and actions affect those around me.
Sometimes the world seems big and full of complicated problems, and that is because it is. I can’t solve the problems of the world, and you can’t solve the problems of the world. We can, however, solve some problems in our little worlds.
***************************************
I interrupt this post (since my 7 year old daughter literally just interrupted my writing of it) to bring you a child’s perspective on what one person can do.
The main point is that she wants to help poor people who don’t have anywhere to live, but she doesn’t want them to just live in a run down hotel. She wants them to have nice rooms, and she wants to pay them for their work.
She heard about people in our community living in run down hotels, and she believed something could be done.
I love that she thinks like this, and I love that she went to write about it because mommy was writing. What I am doing is impacting my daughters. They see me sharing my life, and they understand that their words can have an impact.
I know a hotel for the poor is not going to magically appear because my 7 year old wrote about it, but her words remind me to be generous and kind to those around me, just as I hope my words will do for you.
We each have a purpose. Your purpose is not to create world peace, but to create peace in your piece of the world.
Caring and sharing!