Saturday, I took Kiera over to one of the Splash Pads to play in the water.  I climbed out of the truck and circled to her side to help her out. Sometimes I still forget how big and independent she is now. When I reached her side, the door was open and she was not there. I looked through the window to see her standing by the driver’s side door.

She came back around and we giggled at how we had missed each other getting out of the truck. I grabbed the sunscreen out of the truck and turned around to spray Kiera.

“Oh my goodness.” She said in disgust. “Look. Someone threw their trash on the ground and it wasn’t me.”

I shook my head, glancing down at the Styrofoam cup lying on the ground.

Now, take just a moment and think what you would have done. I know what I would have done. I have done it before. I’m embarrassed to say I would have stepped over that cup and continued on. But, here is what my child did.

She bent down, picked the cup up and carried it to the trashcan. “Do you know why I did that?” She asked.

Not waiting for my reply, she continued on. “One, it’s what a Girl Scout would do and two, it’s what a good citizen would do.”

Kiera stood in front of me, not realizing the impact of her words, holding her arms out so I could spray her down with sunscreen.  I, on the other hand, felt slightly ashamed that my 7-year old child could see what I couldn’t.

“It’s what a good citizen would do.” Her words replayed over in my mind throughout the weekend.

What can we do as good citizens? If we want our world, our community to be better, it’s up to each one of us to help. It could be as easy as picking up a discarded cup out of a parking lot and throwing it in the trash.

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A few weeks ago, at one of our Girl Scout meetings, I worked up the courage to do a lesson that I wasn’t entirely sure how it would be received. I handed each girl a mirror and asked her to decorate it however they wanted. Placed before them was a smorgasbord of stickers, jewels and other decorating items. As they worked, we discussed how we could pay it forward to others. I tried to explain to them that sometimes, even though it is something we might want, it is better to give it to someone else who might need or appreciate it just as much or more.

At the end of the meeting, I took a deep breath and said, “Now, this is going to be extremely hard for you. I want you to take the mirror that you worked so hard on, pick another girl in this room and give your mirror to them and tell them something that you like about them.”

There was a moment of silence before the girls began to turn to each other, handing over their mirror and complimenting the other one. It was a hard lesson, but my hope was that each girl could look at that mirror and think about the effort that someone placed into decorating it.  I want them to remember the compliment that was given to them.

What I am trying to get across is, everything you do makes a difference. You may never know that what you did had an effect on someone or something else. You might never be recognized for it… and that’s ok.

Kiera had no idea that by picking up a discarded cup and making her innocent statement would trigger my reaction to try and be a better citizen or even a better person. She did it because she has a kind heart and she’s a little OCD.

It’s your world… your community. Change it for the better.

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