3/6/17

Don't Let Kind Words Go Unsaid



I don't do it often enough, verbalizing why I admire someone, letting them know how they encourage or inspire or brighten my life.

I think about it. I know what I like about each of my closest friends, I even tell others what I see and like in those people. So why then, do I not tell them, to their face?

After my friend Ev, cousin Cheryl, and acquaintance Sara, passed away, will within a year and a half time span, I realized that too often in life we save those kind, uplifting words for funerals. Not intentionally, we just don't think about how fragile life is, we think we have time to say those things... we save it for a birthday card we will write 11 months from now, or for a wedding toast.

It can feel awkward to say I love you for no reason in particular, maybe especially so if you were raised in a stoic German culture, like I, that doesn't openly show emotion. Letting someone know you really like character qualities you see in them isn't something that simply comes up on every day conversation.

But why not?

I'm tired of funerals, honestly.

I want to start those sharing sweet sentiments with the person I am talking about, not just for the rest of the world to hear after that person is already gone.

Enter, the handwritten note.

It's one the list: 10. Write a Handwritten Note to Someone I Greatly Admire.

I did this the last time I had a birthday bucket list as well, and knew it was something I should be doing more often in life. This time around I decided to write notes to several friends, not just one. I chose women who push me outside of my comfort zone, women who inspire me to love my family more, to read more, to think outside the box. Their influence on my life is strong, They are all very different from one another, and in completely different stages of life than what I'm currently in. That's what I like so much about having them as friends.

This year I'm going to be writing more note cards because life is too short to let kind words go unsaid.

4 comments:

  1. Hi Sarah! I've been a silent follower here for quite awhile and I always enjoy your posts! This is kinda off the subject but I was wondering if you still use your wild bird sling for Brooklyn or did she out grow that? Also did you have a double or single layer one? Thanks! Ella H.

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    1. Thanks for reading along and leaving a comment, Ella. It sure is nice to "meet" you!

      Yes, I still use my Wildbird sling for Brooklyn. However, now that she is crawling, she doesn't like to be carried nearly as much as she use to. I keep one in my Tahoe always, and pull it out when I'm shopping at the mall or when she needs a nap somewhere.

      I actually have two slings; my Wildbird sling is a single layer linen one, but I also have a double layer sling that I made. It was very simple to do. If you're interested in more info on it, I'd be glad to share.

      The double layer does add a lot more support for bigger babies, or when you're wearing your child for longer periods of time. Even though I don't use it daily anymore, I wouldn't want to be without a sling.

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    2. Thanks for the info Sarah! We did order a single layer linen one and I'm eager to try it out.(I hope I'll like it since they aren't the cheapest!) My baby is already 4 mo old so I'd definitely be interested in trying to make a double layer one.. if you could email me about that I'd appreciate it!

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    3. I'm not very tech savvy so I'm not sure if you have my email address or not but if you don't it's wethehiltys@gmail.com. thanks! Ella

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