Values.come says that Kermit the frog has taught the lesson, "Live Your Dreams". While I agree with that thought, I recognize that he has taught so much more. There aren't too many role models out there today on television, and I certainly am thankful I didn't grow up in the time of reality TV that simply captivates, rather than motivates. While obviously Kermit is a puppet, a creation of the genius mind of Jim Henson, he is as real to the average person as any of the Real Housewives or cast of Big Bag Theory ever will be.
So here it is. A few things, not listed in order of importance, that Kermit the Frog has taught me over the years.
1. Be a lover.
Let love lead you. Hopefully, you'll realize in the end that love is more important than social standing, money, or fame.
2. Be a dreamer
Dream big. Dream wide. Dream vast. Dream deep. Never give up on your dreams.
3. Be yourself
Don't waste your life trying to be someone else. Be you.
4. Sometimes it isn't easy being yourself.
You'll have moments. Maybe days. Maybe weeks. You'll have times that you don't like who you are. But by the end of your pity song, like Kermit, you'll realize that things you cannot change about yourself make you who you are. And they are special and important.
5. You can wear many hats in life.
Growing up, I was always amazed that Kermit would appear on Sesame Street as the news reporter. I knew Sesame Street and the Muppets were made by the same people, but seeing Kermit unaccompanied by his Muppet buddies and playing man on the street always baffled me. Now I see it as a tip of the hat to crazy people like me who manage to balance a million different jobs, hobbies, and dreams without ever being given any extra hours in our days.
6. All people can be good people.
People can't become good until you see them as good. This comes from looker deeper at a person, from the inside out. Recognizing their value as a person. Realizing that though they may look one way, and sometimes even act one way, they have the potential for greatness just the same as you.
7. Putting on a show is of high priority.
My brother, Joel, and I used to put on a show on Christmas Eve for my family. It was impromptu, it was unrehearsed, but it was perfect. A show pulls together people's talents and personalities and lets them work together to accomplish a goal of entertaining their audience, which in our case, was our family. Anytime I've put on a "show" with my brothers, it has always been time well spent with them and with our audience.
*Note: the word 'show' could also stand for 'party' or 'celebration' or anything that you are putting together that involves people and happiness.
8. Spazzing out happens to the best of us.
It is inevitable that Kermit will go ballistic during an episode of the Muppet Show or in any of the Muppet Movies (those that have been made and are yet to be made). Stress, too much on our plate, wanting things to go perfectly, etc. are all things that make even those we admire go a little crazy sometimes. And that's okay. Just remember to say sorry to the people you hurt during your spazz out time.
9. We all need friends who believe in us.
Kermit is a smart guy. He always surrounds himself with a wide variety of friends: comedians, musicians, scientists, astronauts, celebrities, hecklers, and a whatever. While Kermit is always the glue that holds the craziness of his friends together, his friends also believe deeply in his dreams. Without question. They always had his back when he ran into a problem. They always trusted Kermit to know what was right, even if he had no clue. Everyone can use friends like that.
10. What we do isn't about us. It is to make people happy.
I've never considered myself a people person. I never pictured myself on the mission field or nursing someone back to health, but as I've matured I've realized nothing has made me as happy as when I have helped others. I've been most unhappy in career fields where my work did not benefit the well-being of people, but rather the well-being of profit. For me at least, working only for personal gain makes me miserable. But working knowing that someone else has been made happy because of my work, or because of something I've done, that is an immeasurable feeling.
To quote Ralph Waldo Emerson, "To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. That is to have succeeded."
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