I was moved by this part of his autobiography in The Art of Eric Carle.
In 1935 I started school in Syracuse. I remember vividly a sun-filled room, large sheets of paper, colorful paints, and fat brushes. One day my mother was asked to see the teacher. Convinced that her son had misbehaved - why else would a parent be asked to come to the school? - she was immensely relieved to be told that her boy not only enjoyed drawing and painting but that he was good at it. It was impressed upon my mother that from now on she was to encourage and nurture this talent. This was advice she would honor for the rest of her life.It struck me as I kept reading how this small experience of a teacher praising a talent in Kindergarten, totally and completely shaped the work of Eric Carle. His mother always encouraged him from that time forward and Eric remembered this as his initial moment of feeling talented.
I want to be the person who inspires others. I want to motivate by compliment. I want someone to do something great because I took a moment to notice something small. And what if I can multiply that by 100? And what if I multiplied that every day? And what if we all just tried to look for the good in each other? Would we all live a life that felt as nice and as happy and uplifting as any page of any book of Eric Carle?
To me, heaven couldn't get much greater.
The world would be a much better place if we could only see the good in others... accentuate the postive and eliminate the negative.
ReplyDeleteI don't know Mr.Carle... sadly... but I do believe in the advice given by a k.garden teacher to his Mother. I wish as a Mother I had made my children feel as though they could accomplish anything at all.
A little bit of praise goes a long way... I do know that.
ToOdLeS.
what a great post and some of the best is to start with the people who love us at our worst! It's always so easy to think of others outside of our family. Loved this post. It was very motivational to me!
ReplyDeleteWow -- how amazing -- I love Eric Carle as well and this story is so inspiring. Thank goodness for that teacher -- and for a mother who took her advice.
ReplyDeleteIt's true that one kind word can affect someone in ways we don't even realize. And for the record -- I know for a fact you DO inspire people all the time Alice.