By Joan Endicott
This special series is for all of you young at heart to enjoy and share with the young ones in your life. – Joan
The sky was dark and the wind felt chilly. Joy sat on the ground pulling at the grass with her head hanging low. She thought the cold, grey day looked exactly like she felt on the inside.
“They said I couldn’t play,” Joy whispered. “They said the game was full, and then they turned their backs and made a circle with no room for me. They whispered to each other and acted like I was invisible…I wished I were invisible.”
GiGi wrapped her arms around Joy, pulling her into a warm, tight hug. Joy loved GiGi’s long, strong hugs. Feeling GiGi’s heart beating against her cheek somehow made the world feel quiet and safe again, melting away the hurts of the day.
“I’m so sorry. It’s hard to be the one on the outside of the circle,” GiGi whispered. “It can make a heart feel a very heavy kind of lonely.”
Joy let out a long, shaky sigh. “I don’t think I want to try to be kind to them anymore,” she said quietly. “It didn’t work.”
GiGi held her a little tighter. “I understand—I’ve felt that way many times before, too. When our hearts are hurt, it is very tempting to just close them up.” GiGi rested her chin gently on top of Joy’s head.
“But kindness is a very brave and beautiful thing. I’d love to tell you about three very special people who, when they were right around your age, learned what it means to have a brave, kind heart.”
“Rachel had a big sunny smile and a happy heart. She was kind to others and never wanted anyone to feel left out. So, for her birthday, she invited every girl in her class. She wanted her party to be a big circle where everyone belonged.
“But three of her friends came to her and said, ‘We won’t come to your party if Emma comes. We don’t like her.’ Rachel looked over and saw that Emma was standing nearby and had heard them. She looked very sad and very alone.
“Rachel felt her heart beat faster. Even though she was worried that the three friends might not come, she chose to be courageous. She told the girls, ‘Emma is my friend, too. I want you to come, and I want Emma to come.’
“Then Rachel walked over and put her arm around Emma. She chose to be a brave friend instead of listening to those who weren’t choosing kindness and tried to keep their circle small.”
Joy was silent for a long moment, gently brushing her hand across the green grass. “I don’t know if I could have been that brave…” she whispered.
GiGi squeezed her a little tighter. “Yes, I understand. Being brave usually feels a bit scary while we’re doing it,” GiGi said softly. “I’m learning that it’s simply choosing to do the right thing even with a shaky heart.
“It wasn’t that Rachel wasn’t afraid,” GiGi continued. “It’s that she chose to listen to what God was telling her heart instead of the loud whispers of the others. We get to practice listening to His voice on the inside, instead of the mean whispers on the outside.”
“Caleb had a huge heart. He was creative and full of fun! He and his friends loved to make up games at recess, like pretending to rescue each other from dragons or acting out scenes from a Star Wars movie—light sabers and all!” GiGi winked at Joy.
“Oh, that sounds fun!” Joy laughed, the sound of her own giggle making her feel a little lighter.
“Ohhh, yes, they had endless adventures, always laughing no matter what they were doing…or if they were doing nothing at all!” GiGi’s laugh met Joy’s in the middle, like a warm secret.
“One winter day, they were excited about playing in the snow at recess and talked about all the different things they could do: throw snowballs, make snow angels, start building a fort…but then someone suggested a snow slide and everyone cheered with excitement! A snow slide it was!”
GiGi continued, “They all worked together quickly, and before long they successfully built a very slippery snow slide.” GiGi overemphasized all the S sounds for fun—the silliness tickling them both until they were breathless.
“When it was finished, the friends all took turns, one after another. Then, as Caleb was getting ready to go down, he invited his friend Henry to go after him.
“Henry wasn’t like Caleb’s other friends; he was quiet and shy. Some classmates didn’t talk to him, and others were even mean to Henry and made fun of him. They said he was ‘different.’ Even though others didn’t choose to be kind to Henry, Caleb did!
“Henry was so excited to go down the snow slide, and his face lit up as he did…until…” GiGi’s voice dropped.
“Until what, GiGi?” Joy asked, her smile fading as she leaned in close.
“Until some of the boys started yelling, ‘Henry, you ruined our slide! Your cowboy boots dented it. You can’t go down it again—no cowboy boots allowed!’ ”
“That’s so mean! Why would they do that?” Joy asked.
“Well, I’m sure those boys would take back what they said if they could, but at the time, they just reacted without thinking about how it could hurt Henry. It’s a good lesson for all of us to stop and think before we say something and ask ourselves, ‘Is it kind?’ ”
Joy paused, then spoke thoughtfully, “Golly, I want to start asking myself that so my words don’t hurt someone else.”
“Me, too, my love. ‘I Get To!’® continue to learn that lesson right along with you!” GiGi gave Joy an assuring wink.
“When Caleb saw how embarrassed and sad Henry was, he patted him on the back and said, ‘It doesn’t matter, Henry, let’s go do something else.’ So they did! In fact, with a few other friends, they decided to make another slide—and it was even nicer!
“So as the builders all got in line, one by one, they slid down the slippery slope, laughing the whole time. Caleb looked over and saw Henry was only watching and not in line to slide. He went over and said, ‘Hey, Henry, come on—come down the slide!’ ”
“Henry looked up at Caleb sadly and said, “But I have cowboy boots on. Does this slide allow cowboy boots?”
“Caleb smiled and patted Henry on the back, bringing him back to the slide and said, “Henry, it allows…EVERYONE!”
GiGi and Joy sat in silence for a long while, letting it all settle in their hearts. Joy thought about how brave one’s heart must be to walk away from a small circle.
The grey clouds were gone and the sky was a beautiful blue. GiGi stood up and offered Joy her hand. As they walked over to water the tomato plants, GiGi handed Joy a small watering can. “You know, my love,” she said. “Another favorite example of a kind, loyal and brave heart is a boy named Nathanael. Besides being kind to others, he made it a priority to show kindness to his brother and sister.”
Joy stopped pouring water. “Hmmm, I wonder,” she said quietly, “why sometimes when it’s family we accidentally forget to use our kindest words.”
GiGi smiled and tucked a stray curl behind Joy’s ear. “It is a very easy thing to forget—but being kind to family is one of the most important to remember.
“Nathanael had a horse named Skeeter and he loved to ride her as often as he could. He was always kind about giving other children rides, but he especially made sure his brother and sister got all the rides they wanted.
“He also enjoyed riding Skeeter in parades. Part of being in a parade is waving to all of the people watching, who are often waving back at you, but because Nathanael had such a tender, observant heart, he had a beautiful way of looking right past the noisy, busy crowds to find the quiet people. After one parade, he said, ‘I like to wave at the people who look lonely.’ ”
GiGi took a deep, emotional breath. “That is a very sweet and important lesson for us all.”
Joy let the stories settle in her heart for a moment. She looked up, her eyes bright with a new thought. “GiGi, I guess I don’t want to be in somebody’s circle unless it’s a circle of kindness that includes everyone!”
GiGi’s eyes filled with happy tears. She set down her watering can, sat on the wood stump, and pulled Joy into a warm, tight hug. “Oh, my beautiful girl, that is exactly right! And remember, kindness isn’t something we ever wait for others to offer us first.”
“We don’t?” Joy asked, looking puzzled.
“Oh, not at all,” GiGi smiled, her eyes twinkling. “We get to go first! With God’s help, we get to be strong and courageous enough to be kind, even when no one else is. We get to be the example and show others exactly what love looks like.”
GiGi playfully tugged on Joy’s sweatshirt. “There is a beautiful verse in the Bible that tells us to ‘clothe yourselves with kindness.’ Just like you chose to put on this sweatshirt today to keep yourself warm, you get to wake up every single morning and choose to put on kindness—something we get to wear everywhere we go.”
GiGi held Joy’s face and looked into her eyes. “And never worry about sharing kindness with too many people—God gives us an unending supply of His love! Lovingkindness is just like a candle, sweetheart.”
“A candle?” Joy asked.
“Yes,” GiGi smiled. “A candle loses nothing by lighting another candle. It simply makes the whole world brighter.”
Clothe yourselves with kindness. – Col. 3:12 (excerpt)
Joan Endicott is a keynote speaker, coach, and author. Her faith-centered message, “I Get To!”®, has encouraged people in over 30 countries to make a simple shift in perspective and discover the miraculous life they already have. To receive a FREE copy of her book and ongoing encouragement, visit JoanEndicott.com and follow @JoanEndicott.
