“People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” — Maya Angelou.

This quote is a great guide for each of us as we embrace this New Year 2018.

How have you made other people feel in 2017? What can you begin to do differently to inspire and empower others in 2018?

This is a valid question whether you are 12 or 92, whether you are mobile or confined to a bed, whether you are rich or poor. No matter who you are and what your physical condition, you are a role model for others. You have the power to make others remember you fondly and feel better for having known you.

Think for a moment about the people who have positively influenced your own life. What did they do to influence you?

Several former students of Shirley E. Pollock have said that she made them feel important, where others ignored them. What did she do? She showed genuine interest in them as individuals, with no judgment. She listened and reacted to what they said with further questions and interest, showing emotion that corresponded to what they said.

It can be as easy as that. What matters most is your frame of mind, your attitude. Here are a few thoughts.

• Ask questions about what interests the other person.
• Listen actively to her answers and ask further questions.
• Forgive, and ask for forgiveness from those you have hurt.
• Catch others doing something well and praise them.
• Phone or write to someone to let her know you are thinking about her, and why.

People will never forget how you make them feel.

Bonnie Fatio

Sharing love enhances our age-esteem.

A tradition I have tried to keep over the years is to personally create the Valentine’s cards I send.  They usually are collages with hearts, feathers and papers of varying textures.  Each is a unique labor of love.  I send them through the post in an old fashioned handwritten, stamped envelope.

A year ago I declared a Valentine’s Day each week.  Once a year seems much too limiting for this positive expression of caring.

I caught this idea from Shirley Pollock who made it her job to send a note to someone each day.  Sometimes it was a thank you.  Other times she simply said she was thinking about you or hoped you were feeling better.  She expressed praise for something you had done or reminded you of one of your qualities that she admired.  Her notes were treasured by those who received them.  She made every day a Valentine’s Day!

My original goal was to send at least one special note each week. Over past months this has grown.  I now write several cards each week to let others know how special they are to me.   I find is that  focusing on relationships in this way makes positives excel and negatives disappear.

Why not make every day a Valentine’s Day and fill your heart with love?