It takes a village, people...

Who doesn't want their child to grow up to be kind?

But, lately it seems that the idea of kindness is being trampled upon, values demeaned and angry tones raised to frightening new heights.

trampled

demean

angry tones

and I'm talking about by adults! 

It begs the question, What kind of role model do you want to be for the children of our society.  I purposely write "of our society" because I am a firm believer in that notion that it takes a village.

Well, that is not quite what I
meant, but I can smooth out
that thought using
one single coma.
It takes a village, people!

---

Now it is time to humor me. 
Let's think of all of the things
that are contagious (in GIF form).

---

vomiting

the common cold

yawns

emotion

The way I see it,
 if all of these things are contagious,
how can kindness NOT be contagious. 
You see, kindness leads to smiles and
SMILES are definitely contagious. 

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​And in the spirit of the season...

The Lenten season is upon us and for those of you unfamiliar with  Lent, it is found within the Christian calendar and consists of the 40 days prior to Easter.  Historically, it is a time when Christians reflect and prepare as Jesus did when he withdrew to the desert for 40 days. It is a time of personal sacrifice, reflection and betterment. While Lent is a Christian season, it need not be exclusive of other faiths, or for that matter, those without a said faith.  How can any of us argue with spending a period of time reflecting upon how we might better ourselves and our beliefs? This Lenten season, I invite you to consider your role in showing kindness to those around you, particularly how we might model that attribute to children, whether they are our own children, younger siblings or simply those we encounter every day.

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​To that end,  recently, I received a wonderful gift.  If you recall, in my last blog, I wrote of Limericks and Edward Lear. In an exchange of comments, I noted that I would have to locate a copy of his Nonsense Book; long story short, I now have a copy of his Nonsense ​Book and it is a treasure.  In a single act of kindness, my heart was warmed and I am still smiling.  And, to this end, I think we all know what smiles are, don't we!

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Yup, contagious. I can see you smiling too!