FAMILY blog
Making Kindness Count
T he month of February means it’s time to celebrate
what they would want on their Valentine. I hope this small
another holiday, Valentine’s Day. As a parent, it’s
lesson in empathy will shift their thinking in this direction.

my challenge to translate what this celebration of
love means to my kids. And with three little boys, I’m not
overly anxious to watch them create Valentine’s gushing
over their female classmates!
As I began to reflect on my message for this blog, I hit the
trail for a run to clear my head. As always, with the road
As Carolyn Jabs explains in her article on page 32, “Being
able to imagine things from another perspective makes
it easier for people to get along with each other, and that
capacity has lifelong advantages.”
I also hope to model acts of kindness for my kids. For
in front of me, I am able to reflect. I quickly encountered
example, on President’s Day, my family will join 100 of my
a fellow runner who offered a friendly wave hello—
high school alumnae to make sandwiches for the homeless.

the runner’s wave. This simple act of kindness offers
The plan is to work in an assembly line to fill lunch bags
encouragement and motivation to persevere. It hit me that
with all sorts of items through the local charity, Cup of Joe.

we need to focus on teaching our children how to create
these simple acts of kindness. And what better way to lift
someone’s spirits than with the kind words of a Valentine?
Hallmark would prefer we mark the holiday by showering
our children and spouses with candy, cards and gifts. I’m
feeling compelled to teach my boys Valentine’s Day is
Every kind act, big and small, can bring more love into the
world. And isn’t this really what Valentine’s Day should be
about? As Desmond Tutu said, “Do your little bit of good
where you are; it’s those little bits of good put together that
overwhelm the world.”
another opportunity to share random acts of kindness, but
how do I teach this?
And from our FAMILY to yours, Happy Valentine’s Day!
I decided to check in with my 6-year-old, to see if he had
any ideas on how you show kindness to others. According
to Jack, “You cannot touch other people’s things; you have
to say nice things to people; you should help others do
things they can’t do themselves or teach them how to do
them; and you should not make fun of someone and hurt
their feelings.” Sounds like good advice to me!
To continue this dialogue, I plan to sit with my children
while they construct their classmate’s Valentines and ask,
“What would make this friend happy?” I will encourage
them to put themselves in their friend’s shoes and consider
6 February 2017 washingtonFAMILY.com
Julie Turco
Account Executive
Washington FAMILY Magazine
jturco@thefamilymagazine.com