by Lois Jamieson
“Promises are like babies; easy to make, hard to deliver.” – author unknown
A promise is a commitment that you should take seriously. Yet…promises are often broken every day. Keeping your word is one of the most important things you can do.
Breaking a promise leads to a lack of trust – especially when the promise is to a child – and most especially when the promise is to Kids Without Stuff.
Several years ago a promise was broken by a visitor during the Fashion/Etiquette Club. I was told that a cheerleader who represented one of the Arizona professional sports teams had offered to teach the girls some dance steps. The Fashion Club girls were extremely excited. They welcomed the beautiful young woman with awe. After introductions, we moved the class into the cafeteria where we had more room to dance. As I watched, I could see that the girls picked up the dance steps very fast and had fun doing it.
At the end of the hour, our guest asked the girls to practice and promised to be back the next week. Each day the following week you could find the Fashion/Etiquette Club girls practicing in the cafeteria. They were all anxiously awaiting the dance instructor to arrive for the next meeting.
The girls waited and waited. I waited and waited. We finally realized that she was not coming. I’ll never forget the girl’s faces as they realized that once again an adult had let them down. No phone call and no note ever came. We never saw her again.
Be extremely careful when you make a promise to a child; and never ever break it!
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