Power of the Flower

This week, our newest fox asked us, “What have you learned about life so far?”

It’s sometimes difficult for me to grasp the fact that I’m at the age my grandmother was while I was in grade school. At the time, I thought people couldn’t possibly get any older than Grandma! Yet I now am Grandma to nine awesome people, six of them legal adults. One of my granddaughters has two children of her own. I’ve been teaching for forty-two years. So, I should be used to dispensing advice about life in general. But I am far more comfortable asking for advice instead of giving it.

So what have I learned in my six-plus decades on earth?

~ I’ve learned a lot about myself, about the things that are important to me, and about the importance of letting go of things that aren’t so important. Yes, it bothers me when people get details wrong, but in the grand scheme of things, it’s how they treat others that’s more important.

~ I’ve learned about writing, and how the written word has the power to uplift and confirm as well as to cut down and destroy. It wasn’t until I read another author’s stereotypical description of an Asian girl that I realized that I need to be mindful when describing my characters.

~ I’ve learned that most people will respond much better when requests are made with a smile and a compliment. Smiles are the universal sign of acceptance. I’m generally an optimist, so unless someone is determined to be ill-tempered and angry, I’m willing to be a friend.

I’ve learned that there are bad people in the world. People who hurt others for absolutely no reason, or worse yet, because they enjoy seeing people suffer. I’ve spent many agonizing moments worrying about my grandkids and praying that they aren’t taken in by those who would use them and trap them into unsavory situations.

But I’ve also learned that there are many, many good people. People who are willing to help, even when they’re not asked. People who care about strangers. And that we shouldn’t lose faith in good to overcome evil.

After the 2015 terrorist attacks in Paris, most of us were afraid of what was happening throughout the world. A French reporter happened to interview a young child who expressed the fears many of us had. The child’s father had that most amazing response, and I admire his calm reassurance. There have been many who disagree (one commenter went so far as to call it child abuse to put such nonsense in the boy’s head!), but I choose to interpret this as a way to assure children that good is stronger than evil.

What do you think about this father’s response to his child’s fears?

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