FRIDAY WISDOM is based on Christine Agro’s Conscious Living Wisdom Cards (The Special Moms’ Edition)

Gentleness Card #16 in The Conscious Living Wisdom Card (Special Moms’ Edition)

Today I drew the Gentleness Card.

Things are so challenging for us these days that the concept of gentleness is important to keep in mind. So today, I’m going to share what I wrote in the Conscious Living Wisdom Card booklet for both you and your child.

May you have a gentle weekend!

For You

Gentleness is a softness in your words, your voice, your touch and your approach to life.  This applies to both how you treat yourself and how you interact with the world. The hardness that covers our gentleness comes from those times when we opened up to the world and experienced invalidation in return instead of acceptance.  As a result, instead of approaching ourselves or the world with gentleness, we can adopt a guarded, critical, even skeptical stance.  Where in your life has hardness replaced gentleness?  Where can you speak more gently, touch more gently, love more gently and live more gently? Bring the notion of gentleness into your conscious awareness and focus on approaching your day with gentleness. The more you choose gentleness over hardness, the faster the covers that guard you will lift away.

For Your Child

Children model their behavior and their life approach by watching the people around them. Cultivate gentleness in your child by example and by conscious instruction. Show your child gentleness in action by demonstrating softness toward others as well as toward yourself.  If you catch yourself letting another driver “have it” or hear yourself being critical, take advantage of a teaching moment and talk about how we can manage frustration and anger. Talk as well about how reacting in the way that you did made you feel, and also offer some insight into the other person’s behavior and why it caused you to react.  Remember that your child is always looking to you to inform her way of being in the world. We all have our moments; it’s what we do with those moments that matters. Teach your child to be gentle with herself* and with others. Help her understand that words can be just as hurtful as physical touch and that other people’s feelings and experiences matter. Cultivate gentleness by encouraging your child to make and give gifts, to call friends who are sick, to appreciate what she has, to find ways to be kind to others and to think about their needs.

**A note about The Conscious Living Guide Wisdom Cards (Special Moms’ Edition): There are 42 cards in the deck and a guide book. The guide book includes insight for you which is meant to help you live life more consciously as well as insight for your child, which is meant to help support you in your Conscious Parenting. For the purpose of this post, I am posting only the ‘For Your Child’ text.  *Additionally,  to avoid the awkwardness of saying he/she all the time,  I have picked one gender to identify in each card. In the ‘Gentleness Card’ I use the female.

© 2012 Christine Agro

Christine Agro is a clairvoyant, naturopath, Master Herbalist, conscious mom and author of 50 Ways to Live Life Consciously as well as of The Conscious Living Wisdom Cards (Special Moms’ Edition). Christine is founder of The Conscious Mom’s Guide, a membership site where she helps support you on your own journey of living life consciously and on your journey of being a Conscious parent. You can also join Christine on Facebook. To contact Christine or to schedule an appointment with her please email her.