As a youngster, my parents taught me that it was important to show people how much I care about them by giving them cards. I enjoyed making my own cards with construction paper and markers by drawing my own little illustrations as decorations. the inside of the card would always include some cute message written in my horrible handwriting. All of my family members would get their own special card for birthdays or other special holidays like Father's Day.

I am an extremely sentimental person, so I save practically every card or letter that I have ever gotten from someone. Considering that most people aren't usually like that, I figured nobody really saved my little hand-made cards. However, last weekend, I went to my grandma's house, and she gave me a stack of old Father's Day cards that I had made for my late grandfather. He saved them. He saved the stick people and crayon writing. It made me want to cry and hug him, but I could no longer hug him, so I just had to sniffle back tears. Those cards were proof of how much I loved him and how much he loved me.

You may think that cards are a waste of paper, and making them may be a waste of time, but showing people you love them or appreciate them is never a waste. I get that this may be daunting if you are not artistic, but I have very little artistic, so that argument is invalid. Part of showing others that you care is by putting your pride on the line. The old saying, "It's the thought that counts" holds true. Your mom will not care if your drawing of a flower looks nothing like a flower as long as you are putting the effort in.

Appreciation is becoming a lost art. Everyone wants to feel like they have value, so we should let them know that we see their value. Randomly give your friend a hand-made card with a long note on the inside; it will surely brighten his or her day. Do you have a great teacher? Then make them a card too! If a card is too much for you to handle, a heartfelt email will do just as nicely. you will develop better relationships with people if you actually make an effort to actively appreciate them. You will never regret telling someone how much they mean to you. Who knows, that person may even save your card.