What do Gratitude Journals have to do with Social Justice?
At New CAJE, I took a course titled, "Using Holidays & Life Milestones to Involve Children in Philanthropy & Social Justice." Machar prides itself on its commitment to social justice. For that reason, while New CAJE offered dozens of options each session, it's not surprising I ended up choosing this class on a Tuesday afternoon.
T'zedakah! Charity!
The session was led by Sharon Morton, the founder of Grandparents for Social Action. To begin the class, she showed a video with beautiful pictures of nature, families, and people working together. It created a feeling of gratitude. Now what does gratitude for our own lives have to do with giving back?
"As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words but to live by them." -- John F. Kennedy
It turns out that when we are more grateful for the family, people, and community that has supported us, we realize that we have received the gifts that we owe back to others. This concept makes intuitive sense to me, although I have not been able to find any proof of it from my own internet searches. However, I have found proof that grateful people are more empathetic, and compassion is a part of tzedakah (charity). In addition, there are countless other benefits, including better health, higher happiness levels, and improved self-esteem.
"Etenim, iudices, cum omnibus virtutibus me adfectum esse cupio, tum nihil est quod malim quam me et esse gratum et videri. haec enim est una virtus non solum maxima sed etiam mater virtutum omnium reliquarum." -- Marcus Tullius Cicero (The being and appearing grateful... For this virtue is not only the greatest of virtues, but also the mother of all others.)
I thus feel strongly that gratitude must be a part of Machar: it's curriculum and it's culture. If we want to raise a generation of humanists, let us raise a grateful generation.
With all these lessons in mind, we will be making gratitude journals on our first class on Sunday, September 11th. Students will be invited to share one thing that makes them grateful every time we meet. At the end of the year, they will bring home their journals.
At New CAJE, I took a course titled, "Using Holidays & Life Milestones to Involve Children in Philanthropy & Social Justice." Machar prides itself on its commitment to social justice. For that reason, while New CAJE offered dozens of options each session, it's not surprising I ended up choosing this class on a Tuesday afternoon.
T'zedakah! Charity!
The session was led by Sharon Morton, the founder of Grandparents for Social Action. To begin the class, she showed a video with beautiful pictures of nature, families, and people working together. It created a feeling of gratitude. Now what does gratitude for our own lives have to do with giving back?
"As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words but to live by them." -- John F. Kennedy
It turns out that when we are more grateful for the family, people, and community that has supported us, we realize that we have received the gifts that we owe back to others. This concept makes intuitive sense to me, although I have not been able to find any proof of it from my own internet searches. However, I have found proof that grateful people are more empathetic, and compassion is a part of tzedakah (charity). In addition, there are countless other benefits, including better health, higher happiness levels, and improved self-esteem.
"Etenim, iudices, cum omnibus virtutibus me adfectum esse cupio, tum nihil est quod malim quam me et esse gratum et videri. haec enim est una virtus non solum maxima sed etiam mater virtutum omnium reliquarum." -- Marcus Tullius Cicero (The being and appearing grateful... For this virtue is not only the greatest of virtues, but also the mother of all others.)
 |
| Gratitude Charm Bracelets & Rocks Are "Grate" Reminders! |
With all these lessons in mind, we will be making gratitude journals on our first class on Sunday, September 11th. Students will be invited to share one thing that makes them grateful every time we meet. At the end of the year, they will bring home their journals.
No comments:
Post a Comment