One Saturday this past fall, shortly after the beginning of
school, Rich and I took both grandsons, ages 6 and 4, to McDonalds…as all
grandparents eventually end up doing at one time or another.
After Jackson, the 6 yr. old, got out of the car, instead of
following me into McDonalds, he walked over to a landscaping crew working on a
flowerbed on the property.
“C’mon Jackson, this way,” I said.
He continued his path over to the landscape crew and stopped just short of the flowerbed. Raising his hand he waved to a group of strangers. “Hi guys.”
Each worker stopped, smiled and waved back. Jack
turned and caught up with me.
“Jackson, what did you just do?”
“I helped fill their bucket. Can I have apples instead of French
fries?”
Have you ever
wondered how your mannerisms/thoughts/words/deeds affect others? I’ve thought
about this for many years and yet it was my six year old grandson who accurately
painted the picture in my mind in a way that totally makes sense. Well, actually
it was his teacher the first week of school, who I must say, planted a seed, a
valuable seed, in the young knowledge-seeking impressionable minds of a class
of first graders.
“Do you know we all have invisible buckets on our heads?”
Jackson asked his mom.
(No, not that way...)
(Martha, no ice...pay attention please)
(there you go...)
“And each time we do or say nice things to someone, we
help fill their bucket.” Jackson also went on to explain that doing or saying something
mean tips their bucket.”
Plain, simple concept. Does it always work in the mind of a
six year old? No, of course not. His mental cognition is still in the
developing stages. But at least he can learn awareness of how his actions can
impact others.
Whether this concept was introduced as an anti-bullying
technique or proposed as merely exposing young people to random acts of
kindness, I can’t help but commend his first grade teacher on the idea.
Give it a try. Help fill someone’s bucket. Say hello, thanks
so much, have a good day, offer a smile. Hold the door open for a person, pay a
compliment, let someone go ahead of you in line.
Therefore, my Bucket Challenge for 2015 is to help fill someone’s
bucket, not tip it. And better yet, make it someone you don’t know. A simple act could change someone’s day.
…And yes, Jackson prefers sliced apples to French
fries which he did not get from Grandma Terry.
Finally, and very important…no ice involved in this
challenge…so let's fill some buckets!
Best wishes to all in 2015, my friends…
(feel free to share this post...a small pebble in a pond can make a difference when the ripples spread)
