Little eyes are watching

Little eyes are watching, little ears are listening, little hearts are feeling.

They see how you treat your spouse, parents, in-laws, siblings, and neighbors.

They feel love, or lack of love, between parents.  You may think that you are putting on a good show, but they know it.  They may base their future relationships off of what they witness at home.

They hear you gossip and say rude things…about strangers, friends, family.  And they will repeat those things and learn that it’s okay to talk about other people in that manner.

They see how you look at the homeless person on the street, the morbidly obese person in front of you in a fast food joint, the mother using a food stamp card at the grocery store.  You don’t have to say a word.

They hear how you talk to cashiers, customer service reps, waitresses, and will someday do the same.

They see you throw trash on the ground or leave a mess in public places, because “it’s someone else’s job”, and they will learn a sense of entitlement from you.

They feel your impatience with them when they are taking too long to tie their shoes, when they ask you to play over and over when you are “busy”, when they are whiny and clingy because they don’t feel well (but don’t know how to tell you that).

They see you glued to your phone or laptop while they are trying to show you something, or to engage with you, and they start to believe that what you are looking at is more important than them.

None of us are perfect.  We will all fail in some of the above ways…possibly many times.  But know that they will learn these things from you, and the only way to teach them better is to do better yourself.  Be a better person for those eyes, ears, and hearts.

Little eyes are watching, little ears are listening, little hearts are feeling.  Send the right message.