When I was younger, my mom used to write me notes. She still does this and it still makes me smile. When she came to stay with us after my daughter was born she wrote me a note that read, "You have such a beautiful family. Thank you for sharing them with me." I still have it. She left it in the cabinet above the washer and dryer. I found it a few days after she left and it almost made me cry. Little things like that make me happy.
She started this with my lunch. When I was in elementary school, she would make my lunch and almost every day there would be a note in there. She would write quick little things like, "Have a great day! Love, mom" or "I love you, mom". Whatever she wrote, it made me smile. There was something about it for me. I loved knowing that she was thinking about me. That, while she was writing it, she was thinking about me and while I was opening it, she was thinking about me.
I also think it became a game. As I got older, in junior high, I was making my own lunch. Because she wasn't directly involved in the lunch process, she had to somehow distract me to get the note in there. I would always wait until I got to school to see if there was a note. I must admit, when there wasn't a note, I was a tiny bit bummed. But when there was one, it made me smile and giggle out loud. None of my friends thought it was strange. They all thought it was cute and fun.
Now that my own daughter is in pre-school, I am carrying on the tradition. I wrote her a note on her first day that said, "Enjoy your first day of school. I love you, mom". She had her teacher read it to her and when I picked her up, she told me what I wrote. She loved it. I try to do it everyday, some days I forget but when I remember, her face lights up when she gets to talk about it. And the great thing is, I know how that feels. A little piece of paper plus a few words equals a big, big smile.
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