Local Opinion: Feeling Grinchy? Here’s a holiday tip

Tomorrow the fifth graders in our school will celebrate all things Grinch — a holiday tradition that gives Grinch lovers the opportunity to reflect on our own hearts when December rolls around again. Although 2021 felt a bit less Grinchy than 2020, it did not achieve that by much, and heading into the holiday it seems we are experiencing a surfeit of goodwill and cheer across our nation.

So, if you’re feeling your heart is two sizes too small this year, read on: What follows is shamelessly positive and uplifting.

My grade level partner and I help run the Student Council of Sam Hughes Elementary. As we have settled into the long-missed reunion with co-workers and students on campus, the staff experienced a sense that community ties needed to be rebuilt. The Student Council took on projects to help make Tucson a stronger community. Once again, the students at our school made me proud to work with children; they really are the best people — aside from dogs (pets are people, too).

In November, the student body collected about 2,200 items for the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona. It is amazing to see how children respond to the notion that other people need food. The basic concept of human need and want resonates with young minds; they don’t care where the hungry came from, who they vote for, what they believe. Children know people need help, and they step up to do their part without question. How much better would our world be if we all thought and acted that way?

The Daily Star recently featured a local Goatfund me (yes, you read that right), for a goat herd in Barrio Centro. The goats needed a home built to protect them from the elements. Our school had a GFMBFFF (Goat Fund Me Black Friday Flash Fundraiser), and students of all ages were delighted to bring in change and well-worn bills to contribute. More good news: As of this writing we have received word that the goats now have their dream home — and a few babies. The Scrooge in me softened a bit when a child who has few means donated a dime; it was a reminder of the power in the gift of a single mite offered by the biblical widow in the Gospel of Mark.

I teach my students about personal responsibility vs. means. Gates and Bezos can donate millions, those with little can give little, and as a teacher, I’m somewhere in between. Then, when we give to the causes we wish to support, I complete the process with my classes. We research sites, discuss charities and complete the donations online together — all the way to pressing submit and printing the receipt. It makes the process real to them, and I hope it sets an example to remember when they get older. I encourage them to ask their adults to make a donation — perhaps in lieu of one more toy/video game for themselves. Some bite at the suggestion. (The World Wildlife Fund or local animal shelters always resonate with children.)

The students are currently wrapping up a sock and underwear drive for the TUSD clothing bank, and the pile of new toys they donated to Toys for Tots incites gasps from everyone who sees it. I believe people have been itching for the chance to help others and to do their part to make our darkened days of the last couple years brighter.

So, if you are feeling like matters are veering toward the hopeless, I can assure you from the kindness I see in young souls, there is still hope. And for those of you still feeling a bit Grinchy: Teach a child to donate this holiday season, and I promise your heart might, just might, grow three sizes today.