One of my recent cartoons just appeared in the April Edition of the Church of God Newsletter. You can see it here.
It’s about complaining. When I thought of this idea, I was thinking how criticism can sap the life right out of someone while encouraging words give strength.
Cartoon of a girl scolding a kitten. She says, “Come down from there! Are you trying to get yourself killed?”
Heights and obstacles are a matter of perspective, aren’t they? Whenever a child is convinced an obstacle is just too much for them, I need to remember it really does look as big to them as they imagine it. Part of the challenge is to convince a student they can overcome an obstacle without belittling or minimizing their fear.
How do you get a child to overcome an an obstacle in a respectful, encouraging way? I’d love to hear your thoughts.
I drew this for Illustration Friday. This week’s word is “heights.”
Cartoon of two students. A boy says, “Should we abandon all hope, or keep plugging through fourth grade?”
Sometimes, it just feels like hope is a distant goal to grasp, doesn’t it? I remember hoping and praying that school would be over soon. Thirty years later, I can tell you there’s hope. Hold on. You’re break will be here before you know it.
Cartoon of two women next to a wilted plant. One woman says, “It’s a valuable plant. When I complain, it wilts.”
Oh, it’s so easy to complain, isn’t it? Something doesn’t go the way I think it should, and the next thing I know, I complaining a blue streak. I get upon my throne and declare the way things should be. Naturally, the world would be a better place if everyone just listened to me!
But the world isn’t going to cooperate. Billions of people have billions of opinions. Many are legitimate concerns. When injustice and selfishness hurts other people, protests and complaints are legitimate.
But when things aren’t going to change, no matter how much I whine, there comes a point, when the complaining is as bad as the offense. Today, I’m going to look for one of those plants. Surely there must be one out there that will let me know when my speech is becoming less than helpful.
Cartoon of a boy in a magician’s costume and a duck. The boy says, “I’m sorry, Sis! I didn’t mean to change you into a duck. I meant to turn you into a dog!”
Siblings really do love each other. It’s just that there are so many possibilities when you have a magic wand and hat. It makes me wonder what I would do today if anything was possible. I want to make it clear to my siblings that I’d keep them just the way they are. They’ve turned into very nice adults, thank you. Besides, I don’t have a duck pond.
