Hi Folks -

I've had several requests for the Children are like Balloons Poem that appeared in the August issue of PTO Today

Children Are Like Balloons
By Dan Gauthier

Children are like balloons with a message inside. They start out small and we inflate them with something of ourselves. As we pour our lives into them,
they spread sunshine,
give joy,
brighten the days and
cheer up the sick.
They remind us of being young and that life is fragile. They celebrate living.

When discouraged, they are like a balloon that deflates. A simple openness allow us to refill them.
with hope for the future and
feeling that they are special,
and the knowledge that they are loved.

Their enthusiasm is like a balloon carried on the wind with never ending energy.
They sway and drift,
it's then that they need our
prayers and loving guidance,
without to much pressure
that would cause them to burst.

The time comes, sprinkled with tears and
joy, when others are able to read the message we have written on their hearts. So we let go and with faith we let fate guide our precious balloons.

Not the end...but truly the beginning.

Thank you for posting that! I copied it and sent it to a few of the staff at our school. I think that would make an awesome bulletin board. Different colored and shaped balloons with students names on it with the poem smack dab in the middle! Thank you again!

What a wonderful poem. I had never read this one before. I have copied it and cut out little balloons to go on our bullentin board at our school. I thank God every day for my 2 wonderful healthy children and thankful to have them.
Thank you for sharing this with us. God Bless You!

Thank you so much for your poem. Seventeen years ago, I found this on a plaque shaped like a balloon. I purchased two of them, one to give to our daughter who was adopting a baby boy, and one to give to the birth mother, who had chosen our daughter and son-in-law to adopt her son. That poem was perfect for both situations. Also, my husband and I do a Parenting Class, we call ABC's of Relationships or Parenting 101. For over 15 years we have used that poem as part of our introduction. Thank you so much. It has blessed hundreds of people.

Yeah, hadn't seen that one in a while (first posted years ago). Good reminder. And maybe a nice addition before Teacher Appreciation week.

Tim