Loving my Neighborhood

Mr. Rogers was my neighbor. 

For three years, I lived in an apartment building not far from the WQED station in Oakland. Fred Rogers' office was housed in that apartment building. We would frequently run into eachother as we were collecting our mail. He had a warm smile and a friendly greeting, as you would expect. Our interactions never went much further than that, but it was a sweet thing, having Mr. Rogers for a neighbor, and looking back, I wish I would have known him better. 

This week we celebrated World Kindness Day. WQED promoted #cardigan day to mark their 75th anniversary and to spread kindness while honoring their most renowned personality.  The city of Pittsburgh was all in, even some of the hospitals wrapped their newborns in tiny cardigans to commemorate World Kindness Day and to pay tribute to Pittsburgh's kindest neighbor. 

In searching through Fred Rogers quotes, I discovered that he truly had important messages for all of us, not just for the children who loved his program. His most prominent talking points were love, kindness, becoming the person you were meant to be, success, and yes, self love and self care. 

So, in an effort to truly commemorate World Kindness Day and to truly honor Mr. Fred Rogers, what can we learn from him that can help us to move forward in personal growth and to make a positive impact on our own neighborhoods? 

1. Loving someone means that we love them now, today, for all that they are. Love means that we love someone no matter their flaws, that we love them through their dark moments, as well as when they are at their best. Love is a verb, it's something that we do, not something that we fall into - Mr Rogers compared the verb "love" to the verb "struggle" and I love that. Most importantly, we love someone for who they are, not for who they are going to be. Love is unconditional acceptance. No one can survive without it. Love is a decision.

2. Becoming who we are meant to be is a lifelong process, and every experience that we have along the way is important. I have these conversations with my kids many, many times  There are experiences we could have done without over the years. We could have lived without the bullying, the unhealthy relationship, the stressful class, or the athlete's heartbreak on the field. But in the end, all of those situations, and how we respond to them create the human that we become. In truth, we become more awesome through difficulty... Hardships are a blessing. Trust me!

3. There is WAY more to success than money. To be successful is to be fulfilled and to love your life. 

To be successful is to understand that who we are and how we love and care for others is way more than what we do for an occupation. The two can be closely tied - but they don't have to be. More to the point, who we are determines what we do and the impact that we have on the world. 

4. In the end it all boils down to love. Love for self, love for others, love before all else. 

Being a caregiver of any kind - a parent, teacher, therapist, health professional, social worker, friend, family member - means that we must be able to love and care for ourselves adequately if we are to be able to love and care for others. Mr. Rogers, my neighbor said it, so you know it's true. 

You can't pour from an empty cup... Take care of you! ❤️