Valentine’s Day comes with a lot of complicated emotions. Especially if you’re a teenager still looking for a connection. When you’re the one that has to watch all of your friends get gifts and sweets while you get nothing. This can have an emotional toll on you whether you realize it or not. However, this sophomore at Axtell High School near Waco, Texas, has a plan. To give flowers to every female student in school. Although this story took place last year before the pandemic, it still holds a lot of truthful lessons.
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Flowers For Every Girl
Jayme Wooley knows that Valentine’s Day for some girls at school can be a dreadful holiday. Some even coin the endeavor as ‘happy singles day’ as we all know how hard it is to find love in high school. It doesn’t come as naturally as it does with others. Wooley claims that it isn’t right to be feeling this way during a day that is supposed to be full of love.
“Over the past couple of years that I’ve been at Axtell, not all of the girls were able to get flowers and stuff. Sometimes, it’d just be a secret admirer or popular girls,” Wooley explains. “It felt heartbreaking knowing that not every girl was feeling special.” (1)
This thought is what eventually lead Wooley to be adored by all. Paired with help from his mom, he purchased 170 flowers for Valentine’s Day. As he got to school, he began to hand out flowers to every girl from every grade. He didn’t discriminate when it came to being kind and generous. Wooley was met with hugs, smiles, laughter, and a lot of love in return. The feeling was so contagious that it made everybody’s Friday an extraordinary day. This encouraged other boys to follow Wooley’s lead by opening doors and other kind gestures to their female classmates.
“He handed me a flower, and I thought it was really special because not everyone gets a flower on Valentine’s Day,” Kennedi Sherrill said, one of Wooley’s classmates. (1)
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Why Does This Day Mean A Lot?
The feeling you get from performing an act of kindness can be gratifying. You don’t have to be a teenager to realize that doing something nice for somebody is a bad thing. In fact, many adults feel similarly about Valentine’s Day. This holiday can be the bane of many singles as it’s a reminder of their loneliness. Wooley’s actions were seen by more than just his classmates. Viewers all over the internet applauded Wooley’s display of kindness.
After posting some of the photos of his Valentine adventure, older women began to comment. Most of them saying how happy they were with his generosity towards the girls in his school. Some of them commenting that they were once that girl that never received a flower on Valentine’s Day. Everybody wants to feel like they are wanted and appreciated. This should be something that we do every day, no matter what the holiday is. However, on this day, in particular, it’s especially meaningful.
“We’ve gotten several messages from older women around their 30s and 40s saying thank you and that Jayme’s their hero because they were that girl that never received a flower.” Explains Amy Gordon, Wooley’s mom. (1)
The Power Of Love
Wooley’s mom said that this wasn’t surprising when he asked her to help with this idea. “He’s always been that type of kid,” Gordon claims. “It made me very happy that he was thinking about others and how he’s thinking about everybody and not just one girl.” She further explains. (1)
There are multiple ways for somebody to express their feelings. However, for someone to take the time to consider more than just one person takes a lot of courage. You have to be willing to put yourself out there without fear of rejection and want to show people you care about them. Being able to express any of these emotions at such a young age can be scary and very rewarding.
“I’ll probably never forget that moment of just seeing their faces brighten up. I don’t want anybody to feel less important than anyone else.” Wooley explains his feelings after the day was over. (1)
These are small ways to not only make somebody else feel loved but to make yourself feel love too. Love takes many forms that should go without saying. The love that you feel with friends can be a very powerful thing. Being able to share that feeling can have a ripple effect, just as Jayme has done with his classmates. He could inspire other boys in the school to make similar kind gestures proves how powerful this feeling is. Even if it’s as simple as receiving a flower, it’s the act itself that lasts as a powerful memory. People will always remember how you made them feel.
Keep reading: Hugging is The Most Beautiful Form of Communication
Sources
- “A Texas teen bought 170 flowers to give every girl at his school a Valentine.” CNN. Alicia Lee. February 15, 2020.
