What The World Needs Now

Photo by Andrew Seaman on Unsplash

Valentine’s Day is just around the corner! A day to celebrate love and friendship and the joy of having that special someone by your side. I can remember when I was younger and single, Valentine’s Day was not exactly my favourite day of the year, but now that I have had my valentine, my husband Phil by my side for almost 22 years, I certainly feel differently. Happy Valentine’s Day Phil by the way!

Love in general, never mind romantic love is something we all crave and need. We all long to feel accepted and valued, to know that someone thinks we are very special to him or her. Children are certainly no different. I have a wonderful career as a teacher where I get to work with small children each day. They are very tender hearted and loving individuals. Each year I am blessed to receive a beautiful assortment of cards, and pictures they have carefully prepared and at times I see the words “I love you Mrs. R.” on them. This is one of the perks of my job because it absolutely warms my heart so much and I happily display these masterpieces proudly around my classroom. My first priority as a teacher is to ensure that each child knows I care for him or her and that I am there to help in any way I can. With this established first, the atmosphere for productive learning can then take place. Recently I was helping a student with some math that he found tricky and when I asked what he thought about what we were working on, he stated, “ I think Mrs. R., I never want to leave you!” How cute is that? It was very humbling and reminded me to continue to strive to be the best teacher I can be and show my students how special they are often. 

The song What The World Needs Now talks of “what the world needs now is love, sweet love. It’s the only thing that there’s just too little of.” These simple phrases sum up what the world truly needs quite well. Every time you read a newspaper or turn on the TV you hear of hate crimes, heartaches and tragedy that have transpired due to the world’s lack of love for each other. My first career before teaching was a clinical social worker. My clients consisted of many individuals who were often struggling with addiction issues and major life challenges. As their stories would unfold, my heart would break as I knew how they so desperately
needed someone to believe in them and show them they mattered. I tried to be that person and let them know that change is a process and they could change for the better with support and taking “one day at a time.” One particular individual was really making progress in her recovery and kept saying each week “You wait and see Dana, I’m really going to make something of my life!” I believed in her 100% and conveyed that to her often, never doubting that she indeed would. Several years later, our paths crossed again and she was still clean and sober and working at a social work agency as a receptionist. We were both so excited to have this conversation and to rejoice in her positive changes and accomplishments.

Random acts of kindness are really on the rise. We have declared an official day now a year for this, but in my opinion these kind gestures should happen every day.  I enjoy reading posts online in Spotted in Windsor or Spotted in Leamington about touching stories about people and the random acts of kindness they have witnessed or received. It does not take much to make a powerful difference. 
We can all do our part to make this world a better place because our world truly needs more acts of kindness and love. I loved the new Disney movie Frozen. In fact I loved it so much that I went to see it twice at the movie theatre! The quote from Olaf the Snowman summed up true love very well. He stated that “True love is putting someone else before yourself.” So simple and well said. Way to go Disney because in this movie although there were romantic themes, he was referring to the love between two sisters which was very refreshing. Here are
some thoughts to ponder on how we can make a difference in our world using the
​actual word love as our guide.
​

L: Listen well. Not just with you ears but also with your heart. Hear what people are NOT saying. Be skilled at reading between the lines and become comfortable with just listening sometimes and being there for someone. This shows people our love and genuine concern for them.


O: Observe everything around you! Be on the lookout for where you could be a
blessing or offer a helping hand to others. Look for people in your life who need encouragement and offer it. It does not have to be a huge undertaking but it is often the little kind gestures that mean the most! A hug, a word of encouragement, a little prayer,  or that listening ear can make a powerful difference to someone who feels down. Ask God to direct you to people you can touch in a positive way. He designs "divine appointments" for this very purpose!


V: Value your friends, loved ones and those who may get overlooked. Tell them
how much they mean to you. It is not enough to assume people know how we feel. People need to hear it from you and when you vocalize this or write it down you will be so glad you did! You may never know if today could be the last day you
see that person. Those who may get overlooked are those quiet folks, the unsung
heroes, or the faithful volunteers. Let them know you notice their efforts and
they matter. It will mean so much to them! I have volunteers in my classroom.
They are enthusiastic, faithful,  dedicated and very committed individuals. I value them and let them know I am very grateful for their support in my classroom. My mom is one of them and my students adore her! She comes in every nFriday and is always greeted with lots of big smiles and group hugs!

E: Embrace opportunities to put your talents and skills to work in different
settings, even those that are out of your comfort zone. You may be led in a
different direction then you could have ever imagined.  I originally had no idea
I would be a teacher. I was happy working as a librarian, but God clearly had
another plan for me. Going back to school for teacher’s college was definitely
out of my comfort zone, but I am so glad I took that path.  I am now right where
I should be in my little primary classroom because of it.

Enjoy your Valentine’s Day because love is all around us, but remember we
should show love to others every day and don’t forget you end up a winner in the
end as well because as the little song goes : “Love is something if you give it
away, you’ll end up having more!” Sounds like a great deal to me!

Until next time,

Dana

1 Corinthians 13:13: (The Voice)  But now faith hope and love remain; these three virtues must characterize our lives. The greatest of these is love.

Little Lesson Learned: We all need to feel loved and valued. Don’t forget to let someone know each day how much you love and value him or her!

Copyright:
​© 2014 littlelessonslearnedbydana 
​(Dana Romualdi) 
Dana Romualdi, the copyright holder reserves all rights to the content on the blog and website Little Lessons Learned by Dana, including the right to reproduce, distribute, and display the content. No content or photographs may be reproduced or modified. Blogs may be shared on social media platforms in their entirety only with full credit given to the owner. Any photographs used by other photographers are used with permission and are also protected. All Rights Reserved.  

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Author

Dana Romualdi is a Canadian elementary teacher, social worker, blogger, author, motivational speaker and recording artist. She has a passion for helping others and spreading much-needed encouragement. She lives in Canada with her husband and two grown children. When she is not working in the classroom or blogging, she enjoys drinking coffee, watching Netflix and reading great books.

Feel free to reach out to Dana
​at: [email protected]​