Words

A while ago I asked my Mom to tell me some stories about her childhood.
What it was like growing up on a dairy farm? What was school like for her?
Well, the answer to the question about school rather surprised me.
This is what she told me.

When she was in the 4th grade she and her family (5 siblings) came down with scarlet fever. Their home was under quarantine for weeks. Because of this, she missed a good chunk of the 4th grade. When the quarantine was lifted they all went back to school.

At the end of the school year, when everyone is promoted to the next grade, my Mom was not. She had to repeat the 4th grade. She was embarrassed. That’s when some of the kids started calling her dumb and stupid because she had “flunked” her grade. From that point on she disliked school and only attended through the 8th grade.

My Mom is a soft-spoken, gentle woman. She’s 90 now and her memory is fading but this event in the 4th grade is still very clear in her mind and brings a tear to her eye when she talks about it. Unfortunately, she has felt “dumb” (as she puts it) all of her life.

What if someone had spoken encouragement to that little 4th-grade girl?
What a difference that would have made in her life!

Oh, those words of encouragement and affirmation are so important in our lives, young and old. To have someone on the sideline of our life encouraging us with words of loving honesty. Our words do make a difference and most of the time they are remembered for a lifetime.

“Pleasant words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.” Proverbs 16:24