Raising your kids to be good, kind people would be top of the list for most parents. But we all know that simply telling a child to be kind is not going to cut it. So when someone strikes upon a clever way to get the message across we’re grateful when they share it.
A mother from Tennessee has done just that, using toothpaste to teach her daughter that once something has been said, it can’t be unsaid – and sharing the simple lesson on Facebook.
Amy Beth Gardner told her daughter Breonna, who was starting middle school, to squeeze some toothpaste onto a plate then once that was done she asked Breonna to put it back into the tube.
As we know, this is impossible and when Breonna found this to be the case Amy’s response was:
“Just like this toothpaste, once the words leave your mouth, you can’t take them back.”
Amy explained in her post, “My daughter starts middle school tomorrow. We’ve decorated her locker, bought new uniforms, even surprised her with a new backpack. But tonight… we did another pre-middle school task that is far more important than the others. I gave her a tube of toothpaste and asked her to squirt it out onto a plate. When she finished, I calmly asked her to put all the toothpaste back in the tube. She began exclaiming things like “But I can’t!” … I… then said the following:
“You will remember this plate of toothpaste for the rest of your life… As you go into middle school, you are about to see just how much weight your words carry. You are going to have the opportunity to use your words to hurt, demean, slander and wound others. You are also going to have the opportunity to use your words to heal, encourage, inspire and love others.
“You will occasionally make the wrong choice; I can think of three times this week I have used my own words carelessly and caused harm. Just like this toothpaste, once the words leave your mouth, you can’t take them back.
“Use your words carefully, Breonna. When others are misusing their words, guard your words. Make the choice every morning that life-giving words will come out of your mouth… Be known for your gentleness and compassion… You will never, ever regret choosing kindness.”
Amy’s post has been shared more than two million times. It was first published three years ago, in 2016, and went viral last year but is doing the rounds on social media again.
It seems some life lessons are so golden they’re worth keeping on repeat.
