Y-O-U, You're Incredible!

“Love is the miracle cure! Loving ourselves works miracles in our lives!”
Louise L. Hay

Yesterday was my birthday and boy did I feel the love! My students greeted me with group hugs and homemade gifts and cards, not to mention warm wishes from friends and family. It is so heartwarming to feel loved and appreciated by others and we all need that validation that is certain.  Birthday celebrations are HUGE in my classroom. Among the variety of things I do to make the birthday child feel special, there is one that has very special significance to me and the students. As a class we sing to the birthday child a song by a children’s entertainer named Ronno, called “Here With Y-O-U!“

The lyrics of the song are: “Y-O-U, You’re Incredible! Y-O-U, Unforgettable! It’s so nice  to see you, and I’m so glad to spend some time with… Y-O-U!  I appreciate Y-O-U ‘cause you’re really great. Yes it’s true you’re special, and I’m so glad to be right here with Y-O-U! The Y-O-U part is YMCA style with gestures and we sing it with great gusto in the birthday child’s honour. I cannot tell you how much I have enjoyed this little ritual! It is priceless to watch the children hover around and literally sing the praises of their special classmate. Equally priceless is the reaction of the birthday child. He or she is grinning from ear to ear, and it is so evident what this means to him or her!  I have been choked up on many occasions and have had to have the kids do all the singing.  I have been known to sing this song each year, so there are many classes that are very familiar with it as the years go on. A couple years ago, a dear teaching friend of mine, Karen was retiring. As a surprise on her last day at an assembly,  we performed the Y-O-U song dedicated to her. It started out small and then like a flash mob, kids from other years all over the gym started to join in. It was rehearsed, but still very cool to witness. I know it meant a lot to her and it will be forever a wonderful memory for me.

We all need someone to sing our praises from time to time. There have been times when I have needed encouragement and at just the right moment, I will receive a kind word from a friend, or a timely word of advice. My husband is awesome for this. He is very intuitive. He can tell when I am struggling and will often literally say no word of a lie…“I think I need to sing your praises a bit Honey!“ How lucky am I to have someone like that by my side? In the same regard, I love to give cards to people to provide encouragement.  Not just the regular occasion style cards, but especially cards that are for no occasion. I love to go on a hunt for the perfect card that will make a person laugh or feel better. When I find it, it is like finding a rare treasure. What I like about these cards, is that they are not expected, so often they are more meaningful. I have prayed that God will let me know how to encourage people and  believe He has directed me by the feedback I have received from the people who have received the cards. 

So many people are desperate for a kind, positive word. We do not know what their day to day lives are like. We sometimes don’t know what their childhood was like, or what their workplace atmosphere is like. There are so many things going on behind the scenes for people that we may never know. Our job should be to be the one that others can count on to be a cheerleader, someone that will come alongside and cheer someone on when he or she  feels like giving up. When I went through a particularly hard time in my life, I  was blessed with a very powerful dream that really gave me perspective. In my dream,  I was running a race with lots of uphill climbs and twists and turns. I was very near the “finish line,” but I couldn’t see it. What I also couldn’t see were a whole group of angels just waiting in eager anticipation to congratulate me as I finished the race. This dream spoke to me that even in the hard times we need to keep pressing on and even when we can’t always see them, there are people just waiting and wanting to be an encouragement to us.
    
Maybe you need a word of encouragement today. So here it is just for you! Y-O-U, you’re incredible to God, me, your family and friends and many people you don’t even realize!

Little Lesson Learned: You are an amazing, unique, incredible person with enormous potential! Celebrate that!

Until next time,
​Dana

How precious are your thoughts about me, O God! They cannot be numbered.
Psalms 139: 13-17

Copyright:
​© 2016 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]