Sheri Gaskins

Hey Everyone,

I hope you guys had a great weekend! One of the reasons blogging tends to be hard for me after awhile is that I like my blog to be organic and be what is on my heart or mind at the moment and today's blog is no different. This morning I had to take T (Tony III) to the dentist to get impressions and xrays done for braces and I was texting with a friend. She was just talking about how T is such a great kid and that I did a great job with him even though I had him extremely young. The conversation got me thinking, I started to think about the different traits that we have instilled in him that make him stand out and force people to mention it to us all the time. Oh and just for some background info, T is 8 years old and will be in 9 in April. He is in 3rd grade.

Integrity: Very early on I talked to T about integrity and how it was so important for him to have it. I explained to him that integrity is what allows people to trust and believe in you. We told him integrity is doing the right thing even when no one is watching.

Respect: I was always raised to be extremely respectful of those around me especially around adults and people older than me and Tony was taught that too, so that was a given for us to instill in T. As soon as he could talk, we taught him to always answer yes ma'am, no ma'am, yes sir, etc when he is answering an adult. We taught him as soon as he walks into a room, he needs to make eye contact and speak to the people there. If someone says something to him, he knows that he needs to respond and be able to hold a conversation. It's such a simple thing but because so many kids don't speak back when adults speak to them, it stands out when a child does this.

Thankfulness: I try my best to remind T to be thankful and grateful for even the smallest things he gets to experience each and every day. I remember him being 3 years old and we would pull into a store and I would explain to him that we weren't shopping for toys today because he was so blessed and had plenty to choose from. He would always say: mommy I am so thankful for my toys that I don't need to buy anymore. Such a simple thing but it is a huge character trait that can truly change a kids personality and how they come off to others.

Humility: This one is always tricky for little kids but after explaining it to T, he exudes it every day. This kid is amazingly smart, he reads and comprehends at a 12th grade level, he has won the spelling bee two years in a row, and is truly a gifted athlete, but if you met him you probably wouldn't know it. Ive always told him, it is important to be proud of yourself and its ok to express that but just be mindful of those around you, that may not be at that level or get to experience things that you do. I thought it would be a hard concept for him to grasp but he has really mastered it. He tends to share his true excitement with us his family so he doesnt make anyone at school feel bad. He truly is such a sweet kid.

I think often times we thing that kids are too young and cant understand but they really can. I would always speak to T as if he was adult from when he was very little and because of that he can comprehend things very well and if you speak to him you think you are talking to an adult. Don't put anything past your kid. There are a ton of different things we teach T every day but most of all, the most important is striving to shine for Jesus each and every day. Explain to your kids that you are light and your words and actions can either shine for Jesus or dim his light. Tell your kids to be leaders and not followers and that their good will be rewarded even if none of their peers at school thinks so.