Being A Golden Friend

Emily colored this picture from our church's Friend magazine a couple of Sundays ago and I am so impressed with how she puts the motto "Be a Golden Friend" into action throughout her day. Here are the different ways to be a Golden Friend:

1. Notice when someone around you feels left out. Invite him or her to participate in your activity. Emily works so hard to include Christian in her "play" when she has her friends over. She knows how good it feels to be included.

2. Introduce yourself to two new children you don't know in Primary or at school. Emily has taken this a step further and introduced two friends of hers to each other so that they could be friends too.

3. Teach a younger friend or sibling something he or she wants to learn from you. Emily taught Kari to clap the other week and is constantly teaching Christian (and his little friends) how to do "big kid" stuff!

4. Ask an older friend to teach you something new that he or she is good at. Emily enjoys her time with her 5th grade buddy, Emma, who teaches her to draw new things.

5. Think of something nice to do for a friend. You could draw a picture, write a note, make a craft or just say something nice to your friend. Emily has a new friend from school who also recently moved into our ward at church! (Needless to say, this was BIG exciting news for Emily!) Emily draws her pictures and makes her little friend crafts to help her feel loved and accepted.

6. Offer to help a friend with homework, chores, or other responsibilities. Emily helps me dust the living room and is working very hard to earn check marks on her chart for completing her daily responsibilities with a cheerful attitude.

7. Speak nicely about your friends. Encourage them to speak kindly about others too. Maybe she's too young, but Emily doesn't say mean things about her friends. She's very loyal.

8. Remember what you learn about your new friends. Call them by their names and follow up on something they told you. You could ask, "How did your test go?" "Are you feeling better?" or "How was your soccer game?" Emily has a memory like an elephant--and she never forgets...anything. She is very empathetic too and is always quick to ask how one of us is feeling if she knows or can tell we're not feeling good or have gotten hurt.

In so many ways, I have a lot to learn from my little girl! I hope that by taking the time to write out these 8 simple ways to be a better friend, that I can work on becoming one myself. Thank, Emily, for your awesome example!