I want to share with you a heart-warming story that a recent client shared with me. It really touched my heart, brought some warmth, and certainly got me thinking;
I had worked with *Jane some months before and since then she had been in touch to say she was exploring fostering children to join her family of husband and biological daughter aged seven.
*Mia was the first foster child to arrive, a girl, aged
eleven. She had been kicked out of two other placements previously for bad
behaviour and had a heart-breaking story of abandonment. Jane didn’t find her
much of a problem in the first few weeks, and was really enjoying having a new
edition to her family. Inspired by a conversation we had in a session about the
power of gratitude, she had a sudden idea to get a chalk board and put it up in
her kitchen. She decided that whenever she wanted to ‘thank’ any members of the
family for something she would write it on the board. After a few weeks of
doing this, as and when, one day she opened the airing cupboard, a place only
she went to, and there was a yellow sticky note from Mia saying ‘thank you for
making me feel loved and part of a family for the first time in my life’
Now Mia and Jane leave each other notes in the airing
cupboard whenever she can’t say something or is worried about something. Jane
and her husband are now in the process of adopting Mia forever.
*names have been changed
All it took was a genuine ‘thank you for….’ To change someone’s life,
install trust, change behaviour and create a future. Since then others she has
told have put up boards in their companies, or found other ways of showing
gratitude. Gratitude isn't just for hippies!
Look what Dr Masaru Emoto found the words 'thank you' did in his famous water experiment.
Who do you need to thank today, and when was the last time
you thanked yourself?
Thank you for reading my blog
x
