Visual Impact in the Classroom and at Home

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Intention is a big word these days, especially within the “Spiritual” community. And I often cringe when I hear people justify their behavior or actions by declaring they had “good intentions.” I feel most of us have “good intentions” but where we get messed up is when we don’t think things through. By this, I mean anticipate consequences from our actions.

Is what you are about to say or do serving the highest well being of everyone involved? This perspective aligns with many ideologies including Don Miguel Ruiz’ The 4 Agreements – Don’t make assumptions and Always do your best, and Rudolph Steiner’s Anthroposophical perspective in recognizing that one’s thoughts and feelings have significant influences on one’s deeds.

Your intentions should always be backed-up with a higher understanding of what you are co-creating, or at a minimum, know that you ARE co-creating at all times. Here is an example I experienced firsthand with my son when he was in 1st grade. I went to volunteer at his school one afternoon. When I arrived, the teacher had the children sitting in a circle on the floor as she read them a story. I was watching her and the children, while soaking up the fun stuff around the room. Then I noticed it! Aha!! THAT’S why my son is saying these words. Dang!

Behind the teacher on a poster board, was a hand-written “STOP saying” followed by a list of these words: Idiot, Jerk, Stupid, I hate you, Yuck, etc. My son had been sitting in this classroom everyday looking at these words. No wonder his vocabulary now included these words when he was at home! After the story, when the children were let outside to play, I approached the teacher. I asked her if I could create a new poster board that listed the words we DO want to encourage the children to use, like Thank You, Please, I like you, You’re my friend, You’re nice, etc. She agreed and the name-calling stopped! Whew.

This teacher had great intentions. Her intentions were to teach the children that these types of words and attitudes are not acceptable in a healthy classroom environment. But how she chose to deliver this message did not support her intentions. In fact, it had the complete opposite effect: children were seeing and repeating the very words she hoped to keep out of the classroom.

I recently went on a house tour and came upon a probably well-intended but negative outcome at work in the decoration of a child’s bedroom. While trying to demonstrate creativity and expertise, the designer’s thought process did not follow through to the ramifications this kind of message carried in terms of negative energy.

We are surrounded by subtle (and sometimes not so subtle) messages of symbolic energy. This is an energy you can’t deny. Even the big marketing and advertising agencies are aware of how the subconscious works and they use it in marketing campaigns to convince you that you need something and must have it now. What are their true intentions? Some are more manipulative than others, and I feel for the most part, most of us are catching on and demanding more and better.

But, what about the “cute” little boy’s bedroom, complete with Superheros, gun paraphernalia and crime scene props? Of course a little boy may like Spiderman and the Hulk while pretending to take down the “bad guy?” But if we look deeper at the images that are imprinting this little guy’s daily life, we can see some pretty powerful messages. A picture frame made out of shell casings as if shell casings were souvenirs of a good day’s work! Crime scene tape, a large STOP sign, and jail bars which symbolize limitations and restrictions; defining good and bad. Guns (though fake) displayed in full view, creating a false sense of security, or, more likely a deep sense of insecurity. A blow horn, because your voice must be heard over the masses and a chalk outline as in a crime scene! Even the brightly colored details almost make child’s play out of very serious issues.

I’m sure the designer’s intentions were probably really good at heart. It’s a cohesive space and they pretty much covered it all, in terms of tying in and demonstrating a theme. Oftentimes, our intentions when applied to someone else are a challenging thing to put forth and get right, because my intentions may not match your intentions.

It’s important to go back to thinking things through. Be responsible. Ask for clarity. Start a conversation. When in doubt, just be about love. Choose positive representation and images over negative ones. Hold that space of love that serves the highest well being for EVERYONE involved. You can’t go wrong when guided by love!  Ensure that your outcome and impact matches your intention.