AFFIRMATION

"To give someone a blessing is the most significant affirmation we can offer." - Henri Nouwen 

Andor Foldes first recollection was at seven: his father kissed and thanked him for helping in the garden. Foldes remembers it decades later, as though it were yesterday. Again at sixteen, while in Budapest. Foldes already a skilled pianist at the time, was asked by Emil von Sauer to play for him. Foldes obliged the master. When he finished, Sauer walked over to him and kissed him on the forehead. "My son," he said, "when I was your age I became a student of Liszt. He kissed me on the forehead after my first lesson, saying, 'Take good care of this kiss -- it comes from Beethoven, who gave it me after hearing me play.' I have waited for years to pass on this sacred heritage, but now I feel you deserve it."

I wish there were some way to effectively communicate the incredible blessing which affirming
words impart to people - especially growing children. Words from a father can powerfully set the course of a child's life, or derail it. One of the most heart shattering experiences for children, is growing up without hearing affirming words from their parents.

If affirming words were something rarely spoken in your home growing up, you 'have got to develop' these words that can help brighten your own child's life. Letting a child, colleague or friend know that they're important, or worth something no matter the degree of failure they're facing will go a long way. Don't hoard them, freely lavish affirming words on others.