My friend Sammy Jo has beautiful brown curly hair, and when she was three, she gave herself a haircut with scissors. Sharp, grown-up scissors.
Sammy’s mom was beyond furious. She was steaming hot mad.
To teach little Sammy a lesson, her mom angrily cut other things in their house, including some of Sammy’s toys. Over the years, the story became a family joke. But it was never very funny for Sammy.
Flash forward to the present. When Sammy’s son Lennox turned three, Sammy bought him an expensive learning video game. She’d planned the gift out for a long time and saved up for it.
Soon after Sammy bought it, Lennox cut the game’s cord with big scissors. Sammy felt a deep, intense anger - a fury like her mother’s. Not wanting to react in the same way, she sent Lennox to his peace tent.
When Sammy arrived at the tent, Lennox was already holding his PeaceMakers cards. He picked the lion card: “I learn and grow every day, yet I am perfect just the way I am.”
And, just like that, Lennox was ready to talk about what happened. And Sammy was ready to listen.
Sammy knew that she’d experienced something beautiful and important in that little moment. She'd paused. She’d breathed. She’d responded.
The cycle had been broken.
My friend Sammy is an herbalist, which is perfect because she is a flower-child through and through (God I love her...). So I was not surprised when near the end of our conversation, she compared Generation Mindful to one of her favorite plants: the dandelion.
She told me: “Dandelions are one of the safest plants to work with. You can eat any part of the plant and it will help you. They’re gentle, just like Generation Mindful. Plus, they're fun.”
Sammy then recommended I take a bath with dandelion flowers that I might soak in their many benefits, and I thought, what a beautiful Mother’s Day treat that would be. Soaking in a bathtub full of dandelions.
Thank you for the love you are Sammy, and for sharing your sweet story with me.
Happy Mother's Day.
And now, if you'll excuse me, I have a bath to run.
Sammy Jo is the Communications Co and Tour Guide Coordinator at Dancing Rabbit Ecovillage. Dancing Rabbit offers free public tours every second and fourth Saturday between April and October. If you are interested in visiting, give them a call 660.883.5511.
Author Suzanne Tucker is the founder of Generation Mindful, a community devoted to connecting the generations and making connection a habit.
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Generation Mindful creates tools, toys, and programs that nurture emotional intelligence through play and positive discipline. Join us and receive joy in your inbox each week.
