Giving Our Love Away
I was touched when I saw this mom’s video of her little guy running to base, but stopped halfway to second base to give his friend on the opposing team a hug. The mom was yelling: “Keep going. Keep going!” How precious was that?
Many children are born competitive, but this kid seems to have a different set of priorities. Obviously, love for a friend trumped his game play.
Rather than worry too much about the outcome of the game, this little man wanted to give some love. The official wasn’t totally sure what was going on, which only adds to the hilarity of this baseball hug. I was concerned he would get called out but the official called him SAFE when he made it to the base. Kindness wins again, just like it should!”
I am a fan of hugs even though Covid still haunts us like a cruel memory. But. We. Need. Hugs!
Oh, that we would stop to hug a friend because we care and love them so much that we can’t help ourselves FROM hugging them. I saw that video and looked for other hugs in baseball. I saw this one where in the first inning of a Little League Southwest Region championship game in Waco, Texas, pitcher Kaiden Shelton threw a ball high and fast, hitting 12-year-old batter Isaiah Jarvis in the head so hard it knocked his helmet off.
After he recovered briefly, Isaiah took first base. But he noticed that Kaiden, the pitcher, was distraught on the mound, holding his head. Jarvis, the one hit, walked to the pitcher’s mound and hugged Kaiden, assuring him he himself was OK and that Kaiden was “doing great.”
It looked like it was a beautiful moment, a moment to pause and reflect on what we teach our kids about kindness. And it is a moment for us to pause and reflect on our kindness to others.
It makes us ponder how well we have raised our children and are they kind and empathetic to others instead of anger and rage. How do we raise kids who are willing to take that risk of offering affection, comfort, and support in such a public forum? How do we react to others?
I am in favor of us – the adults in our children’s lives – setting the example for our children to show kindness and compassion to others. There is power in modeling, and it can be the most powerful influence on our children and others. It impacts their behavior, their thinking, their belief systems, and the ways they treat others.
The question is “How do we model like Jesus?” He was right in the middle of His “game” when He would stop to heal, to care for and love those He encountered. So, are we patient and kind or are we quick to lose our temper? Do we judge others or are we caregivers? Are we patient or do we tend to lose our temper often? Are we judgmental or accepting?
I think my blog today is to remind us to “Love our neighbors as we love ourselves” and be kind to others as we want others to be kind to us. I am in it to win it – the kindness and loving and hugging model. How about you?