Making Pillows Talk

In our family, pillows really do talk—and they say a lot about our family’s love for one another.

My husband and I wanted a creative way to encourage loving, helpful relationships in our home, and so we bought a variety of small wooden shapes at a craft store, painted them as artistically as our talents would allow, and gave each shape a title. A little house became “Happy Home”; a candlestick, “Let Your Light Shine”; a heart, “Love One Another”; a dove, “Peacemaker”; and a bunny, “Speedy” (quick to offer help). These became our family awards. (We have since added more awards for other actions we want to encourage. “Courage Cat” came into existence when we wanted to encourage our children to try new things.)

During the week, we are all on the lookout for kind deeds. When someone receives or notices a kindness, he or she hides an award under the giver’s pillow sometime before bedtime. The recipient can keep the award until our next family home evening, when we collect the awards and put them in a basket ready to be given out again.

We don’t give awards for all the kind things that family members do—some just get missed—but it’s amazing how many we do catch. As a result, we are learning to give, receive, and recognize love in action.—Julie Burgess, Omaha, Nebraska