The Ripple Effect

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“I cannot do all the good that the world needs, but the world needs all the good that I can do.” – Jana Stanfield

Last week, six-year-old Mr. D came home from school and wanted to type a message on my computer. It read,

“Art is so so so so so so fun bcus I em duing clay today.”

Mr. D is less voluble than his older sister so I loved hearing about what he was excited about at school. But I was tired after a long day and busy with getting dinner on the table so I almost let it drop there.

By chance, I snapped a picture of his message and after the kids went to bed, sent it to the art teacher.

The next morning she responded, “I really appreciate you letting me know this! Thank you so much providing a clay experience for the whole school is arduous so your message means a lot.”

That made me feel great for making the effort.

Then, the art teacher thanked Mr. D for the message.

And that led to Mr. D coming home and writing a nice note for his teacher, the gym teacher, the music teacher and the librarian and distributing them the next day.

I love the ripple effect.

Especially when paired with synchronicity. I was writing this post when I read Vicki Atkinson’s beautiful post, Power of the Pen. In it she so eloquently captures the beautiful impact of receiving heartfelt notes. She also connected the dots to a How to Share podcast with Amy Weinland Daughters about writing letters.

I hadn’t made the connection between Mr. D’s notes and Amy’s wonderful message about how much it means to write people letters so I’m adding another dose of gratitude to the feel good pile. I’m grateful to great friends like Vicki Atkinson that remind us about the goodness we’ve learned!

(featured photo is Mr D on the computer)

You can find me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wynneleon/ and Instagram @wynneleon

Please check out the How to Share podcast, a podcast celebrates the art of teaching, learning, giving, and growing!

42 thoughts on “The Ripple Effect”

  2. Mr. D has learned something precious about human contact. Not everyone does. He is off to a wonderful start in life, Wynne. You are tightly proud of him.

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  3. Love, love, love Mr. D’s big heart and the fact that he asked to type the message on your laptop speaks to me. He sees how his thoughtful mom uses her keyboard to connect with others and he’s emulating you. So good! And cheers to teachers who need our love and recognition. Hugs to all! ❤️🥰❤️

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  4. This is the sweetest thing. It reminds me of my all-time favorite quote: “Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.” – Leo Buscaglia

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  6. you have no idea how these notes from the kids, from the heart, passed on to the teachers, make all the difference in the world, and now you do know actually. thank you for this

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  7. How wonderful. Mr D has learned at a young age the power of the written word. One of the best things my mom taught me was to write thank you notes to people who gave me gifts or did something nice for me. I still do it and so does my daughter. Anyone can say, Thank you, but it packs a bigger punch if someone takes the time to write it down.

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  8. This is such a beautiful, uplifting post to read on a Monday morning. Mr. D’s heart shines through here in such a lovely way. I bet every note he wrote made the recipient’s day. What a thoughtful young man. And what a good mom you are to encourage and share it.💕💕

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  13. Awww! I love this! Mr. D didn’t start out thinking about writing nice notes to hi teachers, he was simply wanting to write down his thoughts, no doubt how his mom does. It was your action that created the ripple effect when you shared his note with his teacher, but unprompted he expanded upon his work! Bravo!

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  17. Wonderful post, Wynne. Teachers are always grateful to hear from parents. I’ve had the same experience over the years. Some of them work very hard, and sometimes their efforts go unnoticed. What a lesson Mr. D learned about the power of gratitude.

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  20. Mr D has a kind heart. I just love how he wrote even more letters after he saw the impact on his art teacher. Clay art is indeed a fun activity. I’d write a glowing review too!

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