If you have a toddler at home or have spent any amount of time around one in the last few years, I’m sure you have heard of Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood. It’s an animated spinoff TV show of the Mr. Rogers character on PBS. He teaches kids strategies about emotions and social situations using short songs. They are usually pretty catchy and to the point. Each episode is based around common themes preschoolers and young school-age kids face. But what if we, as adults, could also learn a thing or two from this primary-colored tiger?
Song: “Stop, stop, stop. It’s ok to feel angry. It’s not, not, not ok to hurt someone.”
As adults, we don’t always handle our anger very well. It is often bottled up until it explodes, or it is misdirected towards the wrong person or thing. It’s a perfectly natural feeling that everyone experiences and is 100% normal. And it’s ok to be angry! But it isn’t ok to hurt the people around you by your words and actions. There are right and wrong ways to deal with it, and we need to find healthy outlets to let out our frustrations. Which leads me to…
Song: “When you feel so mad that you want to roar, take a deep breath and count to four.”
Sometimes you get so upset you automatically react. By taking a step back and gathering your thoughts you can help diffuse the situation. Maybe you do actually need to count to four in your head! By calming down you can regroup and proceed with…
Song: “Use your words and say how you feel.”
Often times you feel multiple emotions at once. When you verbalize exactly how you are feeling it’s a lot easier to work through. Are you upset with a co-worker? Have a chat with them about why you are upset instead of treating them coldly. Is your child clingy today and you just need a break from being touched? Instead of yelling tell them you just need a break and some space for a minute. And finally…
Song: “When something seems bad, turn it around and find something good.”
It’s hard, but try to find the positive in every situation. I can’t tell you how many times life seems to be spiraling out of control, I look at my husband and burst out laughing. I don’t know what else to do, so he and I just laugh about how bad it is while trying to find something good in it all. It might just be that I somehow survived the day, but focusing on the good and moving forward is what changes my whole attitude.
Adults tend to overcomplicate things in the most interesting ways. We take something that could be so simple and make it into a huge, tangled mess. What if it is as simple as a little tune sung by a children’s TV character? If it’s meant to be presented in a way for small, growing minds to understand then certainly it can pertain to us as well.
Wouldn’t life be much better if we followed the same advice we are giving our children?
