Check Out My Newest Guest Post From Author J. F. Bierlein PLUs Learn About His New Book ‘What Makes Hands Beautiful?’ & Enter A Giveaway! #WhatMakesHandsBeautiful
This post is sponsored by the J.F. Bierlein. The review and opinions expressed in this post are based on my personal view.
5 Life Skills Children Learn Through Helping Others
What makes hands beautiful? Helping others. So how do we teach and encourage that? Empathy is an important life skill. How do we feel when we are sad? How do we feel when others will not share with us? How do we feel when others don’t think of us? Now, why do we want to do things that make other people feel bad? Helping other people makes two people feel better, the person being helped and the helper. We focus not on what hands look like, but what they do.
I started thinking about this book when I was in a hospital. I was amazed at the variety of hands that helped me heal while I was there—they were a wide variety of ages, races, ethnicities, and cultures—and all of them were there to serve and help others. They were beautiful people with beautiful hands. At a time of polarization and conflict, I saw how hands that serve and help others bridge any gaps that we try to impose. I also realize that seeing the beauty of many different hands has much to teach children. Some of the valuable lessons include:
1. Empathy: being award of other people’s feelings. It is beautiful when we can show other people that they matter. When a child is mindful of what feelings a given situation causes, he or she will see that other people have the same feelings in the same situation. Much as we don’t want to be sad or hurt, we don’t want to make others sad or hurt. By helping others, children show that they care about other people and their feelings, which goes a long way to cultivating kindness in adulthood.
2. Respect: When we help others, people appreciate and respect us. So much of who we are in other people’s eyes is what we do and how we do it.
3. The good and rewarding feeling that kindness brings: It feels good to help others, it makes them and us smile.
4. Sharing and generosity. We feel better when we share with others. We do not live alone and all of us navigate through life together. When we share what we have, we double the gift through the happiness that comes to the giver and the recipient.
5. Demonstrating that this is goodness in the world, being a light in the darkness. A child can learn that a simple kindness can change a person’s day and restore faith in human goodness. As the saying goes, if you find yourself in darkness, be a light to others.
6. By being kind to older people, children can hear stories to help them grow and navigate their way through life. Older people especially appreciate the kindness of younger people and feel a sense of hope when they see a child act in a kindly way. It may lead to an older person telling a story to reinforce the values of kindness and helping others that a child may remember for years to come.
I wish for you the joy that comes from seeing the beauty in many hands!
ABOUT THE BOOK
What Makes Hands Beautiful?
Written by J. F. Bierlein
Illustrated by Houda Zahid
Ages: 4-6 | 29 Pages
Publisher: Independently Published (2024) | ISBN: 979-8336568356
Publisher’s Book Summary: In this charming story, a young girl learns from her mother that it is not appearance that makes hands beautiful, but what they do, and the love that motivates the hands. The book is a celebration of the values of kindness, service, and respect for others and their work.
PURCHASE LINK
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
The author, J.F. Bierlein, is a writer, business coach, consultant, and part-time consultant. His website is jfbierlein.com. Bierlein has written several other books, including Parallel Myths, which has sold more than 100,000 copies, been selected as a textbook, and been translated into Spanish, Portuguese, and Korean.
During his long and totally fun life, he has worked on Capitol Hill, taught as an Adjunct Professor for 10 years, and worked as a consultant in a wonderful firm for the past 20 years. He loves to travel, especially to Istanbul, and keeps in touch with a wide variety of friends throughout the world.
Mr. Bierlein is also the Chair of the Monte Azul Foundation, which supports sustainable agriculture and youth employment and training in rural Puerto Rico.
For more information, check out jfbierlein.com.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jf-bierlein
ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR
Houda Zahid is a Strategic Life Coach, Udemy/MOCC course creator, Arabic, French, and English language coach, and graphic designer based in Casablanca, Morocco. She is the mother of Raniya and Isla, both primary school children, who helped inspire this book. She loves traveling and has been to many countries around the world. She also has a big passion for swimming.
GIVEAWAY
Enter the giveaway below for your chance to win a signed set of JF Bierlein’s books, including What Makes Hands Beautiful?, Parallel Myths, Kindness Matters, and the upcoming River Stones.
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