Kindness, Love, Unity & Bravery Join the KLUB by April Cox
Between today’s highly charged political will stand tall.” she tells them. Given this environment and the many stressors of inspiration, the animal friends decide to the day, I find negativity creeping into my form a club… or should I say KLUB? mind and while I try my best to resist, it is not easy. I am usually a very positive person, looking for the silver lining in every cloud. So, if I am being affected by the woes of the day and the voices invading the airways, I can only imagine how it must be affecting our children and grandchildren. Kids tend to internalize things - from the raised voices in the next room to challenges at school or troubles with interpersonal relationships. Some struggle with other issues like bullying, learning disabilities, poverty and more. These things make them feel isolated from others. They may think that they just don’t “fit in”. While I know (from firsthand experience) that dealing with adversity makes us stronger, I can’t help but want something more for our children - a positive force for good. One that could empower them and give them a sense of control. With my latest work in progress picture book, Join the KLUB. - No Bullies Allowed, we find our sweet little Labradoodle character and his friends coming face to face with bullies and feeling discouraged, left out and hurt. They are reminded by wise Aunt Nola that they are not alone. There are many others who face the same challenges and those doing the bullying are in the minority. “Do not let the bullies make you feel small. Stand together and you
The letters K-L-U-B mean something important and become guiding principles for the group - Kindness, Love, Unity and Bravery. With those four tools the animal friends decide that they can accomplish anything. Kindness and love lead to friendship, inclusion instead of bullying and help for those in need. Unity is a strong word that means they are not alone. It represents working with others toward a common goal (being part of something bigger than ourselves). In the case of our Little Labradoodle and his friends, it is standing together to embrace goodness, stand against bullying, welcoming / serving others and making the world a better place. Wouldn’t that be amazing?! The final tool is bravery, which is a critical part of accomplishing those big goals and being successful when faced with adversity. Fear comes with the unknown or when dealing with difficult situations. Having courage is not about the absence of fear, but it is moving
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