All I Need To Know I Learned In Kindergarten

Do you remember that poster with the poem on it called “All I Need To Know I Learned In Kindergarten”? I do, vividly.  I was riding my bike this weekend and suddenly thought of it when some young girls in my neighborhood smiled excitedly and said, “Hi!” as I rode past them.  I thought about those girls for the rest of my bike ride and how blissful childhood can be.

As a child, you learn basic life lessons that transcend through your entire life time.  Grown-ups sometimes forget those lessons in order to gain professional and personal success.  But the girls that smiled at me as I rode my bike- no older than 10- smiled at me for no other reason than to be friendly and nice.  It’s amazing how far a simple smile can get you in life.

While I won’t sit here and go through the entire poem, I think the author lists some points that are inspiring and should always be remembered by all kids, big or small:

Clean Up Your Own Mess
Hate to start with a “negative” one (I’m just going in order of the poem), but this one is incredibly important to remember as an adult.  You MUST be able (read: mature) enough to admit when you made a mistake and do whatever you can to make it better.  Fall behind on a deadline at work?  Put in extra effort after that to show your boss you’re truly sorry.  Accidentally offend a friend?  Apologize to them and take them out to lunch to make up for it.  Regardless of the situation, if you’re not mature enough to clean up your messes, you have a long life ahead of you.

Live a balanced life – learn some and think some and draw and paint and sing and dance and play and work every day some.
Everyone always tells you this: be a well rounded person.  I went to a university where under grad students were required to fill an insane core requirement in order to graduation, and while I was in college I hated it.  But now that I’m graduated and in the “real world”? I am so thankful that Loyola University Maryland made me take courses in Philosophy, Ethics, Theology, Art, etc. to prepare me for a life that’s not just Advertising and Marketing.  If you have a one-track mind and aren’t open to other walks of life, your success will be much more limited.

Be aware of wonder. Remember the little seed in the Styrofoam cup: the roots go down and the plant goes up and nobody really knows how or why, but we are all like that.
Jackie Adkins wrote (well, recorded) a great vlog post about impossible things.  Watch it, and I bet you’ll agree with him as much as I do.  Everyone should have “impossible” dreams.  Some dreams have to come true at some point.  Even if they don’t, if you don’t have those seemingly “impossible” dreams, what are you working for?  Life isn’t fun if you don’t have something to look forward to, something to achieve in your life.  So keep the dreams impossible and keep on truckin’.  Chances are, you’ll achieve something great if you do.

And it is still true, no matter how old you are, when you go out in the world, it is best to hold hands and stick together.
I don’t have to explain that one.  You are nowhere without your family, friends, coworkers, and other communities. Always stick together.

Now, just like in kindergarten, I want to play a bit. Look at the poem, pick out a bullet (it can be one that I listed), and leave a comment with how grown ups can continue to embrace that life lesson.

(Yes, that little girl is me, at age 6. When I was in kindergarten, learning all I needed to know).

‘Tis the Season to Help Someone Else

Who's holiday season will you make better this year?

Ok, today is one of those days where I’m going to veer from my original intent for this blog, but try and bring it back together.  I am inspired to write today because of the following:

1. A blog post that I read this morning from a JVC volunteer in Baltimore (what a coincidence…) about the spirit of giving and what it’s all about.
2. The non-profit where I work got the largest donation we’ve received in YEARS from a single non-corporate donor.  Not only was it a large donation, but it was sent back to us in a Christmas card, not the reply envelopes we send out.
3. My “friends” on Twitter tweeting about charities, Adopt a Family programs, etc. etc. etc.

By the way, all of this occured between the hours of 9 and 4 today, all before I left for the day.

That may not seem like a big deal to you.  Let me just say, and you wouldn’t think this at first, working for a NPO allows me to see the very best and very worst in people.  So these three points which I mention above show me how kind, generous and charitable man kind can be.  Especially now, in such a time of economic turmoil and lack of resources.  We, as many other NPO’s, are expecting more requests for gifts/food/etc. and less donations because of the economy.

It makes me smile to know that there are some people out there who are still helping others, regardless of the economy or other factors.  I was always one of those people.  I guess my 16 years of private, Catholic/Jesuit education and my loving family that instilled in me a need to help others who are less fortunate than I am.  Especially at Loyola University Maryland, where over half of the student body is involved in some kind of community service with the surrounding Baltimore community.  I always participated in Presence for Christmas- which is much like an Adopt a Family program, but we bought gifts for individual children instead of families- Relay for Life, which was Loyola’s biggest fundraiser of the academic year- and service learning, which allowed us to use real-life experiences and apply classroom taught lessons while helping others in the community.  I believe it was this education and experiences that led me to the position I am in now, helping me gravitate towards to non-profit industry.

Now, there is still time to make a family have a happy holiday season.  Here’s some inside scoop- deadlines for programs like Adopt a Family don’t mean anything.  Services are always accepting donations, no matter what time it is.  If you can, do your part to better society and your community this year.  Our website even offers online donations via PayPal, which means no check writing or anything.  Also available there is information about donating your time, old clothing, and unwanted goods.  But only do so to help improve another’s state of living- if you’re expecting to get ANYTHING out of donating (acknowledgment, compensation, etc.) then you’re in it for the wrong reasons.

Which brings me back to technology and social media.  Many of the NPO’s in your area have websites, Twitter accounts, Facebook fan pages, which makes it easier than ever to donate money or find out volunteer opportunities.  Hell, you can even look them up on your phones- simply amazing.

I hope you don’t miss the chance to light up someone’s face throughout the year, especially this holiday season.