Maybe this is because "words of affirmation" is my #1 love language. It's how I express my love to others and how I feel loved by them. If I don't receive "words" from others whether in written or typed form, I feel unloved by that person. I can't help it- it's how I'm wired.
Now I've learned about the 5 love languages and I know that just because "words of affirmation" is how I feel loved, that doesn't necessarily mean that's how someone else feels loved. You have to be creative and find ways to show them love in their love language (the others are: acts of service, touch, gifts, and quality time).
But I can't help myself. I still like making people cards! In my opinion, it doesn't hurt to write someone a personal message of encouragement. Who doesn't love a pat on the back and a thank you for their hard work? We all need to hear uplifting words now and then because there's enough discouragement in life as it is.
We are saying goodbye to many students in our youth group this month who are graduating or moving back to America. In keeping with my annual ritual, I write a goodbye card for every single person who is moving away. It takes a lot of time but I pray it makes them feel loved and appreciated by us!
I've devised a super easy way of personalizing homemade cards so that anyone could do it. Here's how!
See that stack of cards in the clear box above? That set cost $9.99 at Target and had hundreds of cards and envelopes inside (not to mention tons of warm colors!)
See that pencil box above? That's where I keep all my multi-colored sharpies. I bought some "Caribbean colors" at Wal-Mart last year and I love them!
To make the above card, all I did was:
1. Stamp a picture (which in this case is music notes)
2. Cut a piece of ribbon (from Wal-Mart) and glued it on the corner
3. Used a special shape puncher for the corner
4. Wrote the person's name in pretty handwriting
The above card was for a boy so I had to make it masculine looking. The difference for this card was:
1. I used an ipod sticker (it was in a pack of boy-ish stickers with drums, amps, and other music things)
2. I used a stamp that made a plain, dotted pattern in the back
I took the shapes that were punched out of the corner and then glued them on the back.
Then I wrote "Dear ____" and then went on to tell that person why we appreciate them. I feel very strongly that a card shouldn't just have your name signed at the bottom. The purpose of a card is to write in it! Everyone deserves to hear why you think they are great and what you love about them. I don't exaggerate or embellish at all, I just write why that person has blessed us and then write a prayer for their life.
I keep all my card-making tools in a box together. That way everything is easy to access.
Then I put the little munchkin in her high chair to eat and/or play with Play-doh. She likes to sneak items out of my craft box and make a mess. Creative and mischievous. A dangerous combination...
So go ahead, make a card for someone you care about! You never know how special it will be for them.
P.S. This is what I wore yesterday. Don't mind the sleeping bags in the background. My husband is still sorting items from his men's camping trip last weekend ;)
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