Why Be Kind (a letter to my children)

Happy Friday my beloveds,

I wrote myself an outline when I started this endeavor in September of what I want to cover in my letters to you both. I have five more topics I want to discuss with you left on my docket.

Here are the five. 1) Why Be Kind. 2) Why we live in the country. 3) Why are Meme and Baba living with us. 4) Dragon - on sex. 5) Bean - on sex. Even writing this down makes me smile, because I can’t see myself stopping this anytime soon and sticking with this outline. But here is the current plan, anyway.

So… why be kind. Honestly, the short answer is because we are all the same. I am kind to you because I am actually being kind to myself.

The long answer. Being kind makes my belly feel expansive and warm. Being kind makes me feel connected to the larger life. It is important to be friends with kind people and kind to yourself.

Being kind is putting your service into your hands, your face, and your heart. It is bringing someone tea when they haven’t asked for it. It is writing a thank you note to someone who doesn’t expect one. It is bringing flowers to a friend out of the blue .

Here is the most important part my children - my beloveds. Baba told me this when I was in my early twenties - you are the only person who is going to take care of you. So be kind to yourself first and then that self-care can spill into the world. Sometimes it is good to have a conversation in the mirror. Look in your eyes and talk about whatever is going on. Feel what your body is telling you. Is it telling you that you need space? Do you need to use your big voice and tell someone to go to hell? Do you need to remove yourself from a situation? Do you need to stretch more fully into a situation? Listen to the still voice inside of you, the one that speaks of love, of kindness, of truth, and move forth from there.

Be kind to yourself by listening to that voice and moving from there - that voice spins the planets and sparks life - it will not let you down.

Bean - tomorrow we are having a birthday party for you. Your father stayed up last night till 11 (late for us, hehe) to make the cake that we will decorate with berries and whipped cream. You want blue frosting, so I am boiling down some of the summer blueberries to make a syrup - the whole house smells like summer. We are going to attempt homemade gummi bears with the rest of the syrup.

Dragon - yesterday as I am putting you down for your nap, I rubbed your nose with mine. Just as I am leaving your room, “Momma! Huggy! Huggy!” I turn around and reach down for you again in the crib. We rub noses again and I kiss your soft delicious face. I feel you smile against my cheek in the dim light, I turn back to leave the room, all is quiet.

What an amazing life. Thank you for being my children. I love you more than you will ever know.