WE ARE ALL IN THIS TOGETHER. Check out these messages of hope from around the world – hearts, rainbows, sidewalk chalk, and more!
These are strange and eerie times. There is an underlying feeling of stress and worry behind every single thing I do. The novel coronavirus has stolen restful sleep from my nights and filled my mind with worries throughout the day. However, I have found some peaceful moments. Some cheerful moments. Some joyful moments. Some hope.
One thing that has really brightened my days are the messages of hope that I see scattered throughout my own neighborhood during my daily walk. Messages of hope in the form of windows decorated with rainbows and hearts, sidewalk chalk drawings and messages, yard signs with neighborly greetings, and more. Additionally, I have seen posts on social media from friends who have created their own cheerful messages in other neighborhoods.
My family decided to join in the fun. The kids and I popped in a movie and started cutting out hearts from colorful construction paper. Later, we taped the hearts in rainbow stripes to our front storm door for the entire neighborhood to enjoy.
I shared a picture of our handiwork to my Facebook account, and quickly, friends started sending me invites to join Facebook groups from all across the nation (and even the entire world). These groups all have one thing in common: they are dedicated to sharing pictures and messages of hope.
Be sure to check the end of this blog post for a list of these Facebook groups.
We Are All in This Together
This experience has made one thing quite clear to me. We are all in this together. No matter what city, state, or country you live in. This global pandemic is a shared experience that we must all endure, and I am overwhelmed with the love and encouragement people are sharing with one another – whether it is through rainbows, hearts, sidewalk chalk drawings or other artistic means.
Rainbows, Hearts and Other Messages of Hope
This week, I would like to highlight some of those messages of hope and positivity – from my home, my nation, and across the world.
I put a call out to some of my travel writing colleagues asking them to share some of the messages of hope they have run across (or created themselves), and I couldn’t believe how many people responded within just a few hours. I received pictures from all across America and even all over the world.
There are rainbows and hearts and sidewalk chalk drawings. There is art inspired by nature. There are precious family moments.
Even the smallest of children are helping to spread cheer.
Here are several pictures that made me smile. I hope they bring you joy as well.
Rainbows and Hearts from Home
My own family is sharing love and hope with rainbows and hearts. We cut hearts from construction paper and used the colorful hearts to spread joy in our own home and to the entire neighborhood. We even used the remaining heart cutouts to spread a little long-distance love.
We arranged hearts in the shape of a rainbow on our front storm door to share a little hope throughout the entire neighborhood. (Our family has always enjoyed looking for rainbows!)
Then, we decided to add a few hearts where we could see them ourselves – on our back sliding door.
We had several heart cutouts left so we decided to mail those to a few special people. I hope these special friends and relatives feel how much we love them when they open those envelopes.
Messages of Hope across the United States
We are not the only family in the United States spreading messages of hope, cheer and love.
Alex and her family created this wistful colorful heart window decoration in Fort Riley, Kansas.
Alicia and her son created these handmade heart decorations in West Fargo, North Dakota.
Amanda’s little guy in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania is so proud of the rainbow rock he helped paint for his family’s front yard.
Catherine’s family is spreading cheer with sidewalk chalk in West Linn, Oregon.
A few window decorations courtesy of Cheryl’s family in suburban Chicago of Illinois.
Sidewalk chalk art from Cheryl and her family in Chicago.
Dan and his wife are displaying a rainbow made from paper chains in their front window over in Iowa.
Hilary’s family in Southern California used nature to create this beautiful piece of rainbow art.
Jamie’s daughter painted their front door in Middletown, Indiana.
Julie’s family used sidewalk chalk to encourage cheer in their hometown of Rocky Mount, North Carolina.
I love this colorful window decoration created by Kirsten in Seattle, Washington.
Lori and her family are spreading cheer with a little sidewalk chalk in Indianapolis, Indiana.
A little sidewalk cheer courtesy of Nikki and her family in Gilbert, Arizona.
Messages of Hope from Other Countries
Carrie from FUNky Moose is currently in Northern Italy. She reports that people there are displaying hearts that say “Andrà Tutto Bene” (which means everything will be fine).
Anna and her girls are spreading cheer to their Essex neighborhood in England with this gorgeous window decoration.
Debbie is also spreading hope in Berkshire, United Kingdom with a window rainbow.
Heleen’s family is using face paint to inspire hope in Eeklo, Belgium.
I love this rainbow art inspired by nature! It was created by Jenny and her family in United Kingdom’s Peak District.
Jenni’s family in Greater Manchester, England proudly displays a rainbow in their home’s window.
A little sidewalk cheer courtesy of Lindsay and her family in Vancouver, Canada.
Nikki and her family used sidewalk chalk to spread cheer in York, England.
RELATED: Looking for a fun way to enjoy all of these rainbows (and in some neighborhoods, bears) with your family? I love this scavenger hunt game created by The Crazy Outdoor Mama.
Where to Find Rainbows, Hearts and More on Social Media
As I mentioned earlier in this post, you can find messages of hope all over on social media.
On Twitter or Instagram, check out a few of these hashtags:
- #RainbowsOfHope
- #WeAreAllInThisTogether
- #AWorldOfHearts
- #RainbowsOverMichigan
- #AndràTuttoBene (Italian for everything will be fine)
On Facebook, check out these groups:
See more pictures on the Minivan Adventures Facebook Thread.
Have you created your own message of hope to share with the world?
If you have created something like this, please tell us about it in the comments. Or, share a snapshot of it on the Minivan Adventures Facebook Thread.
These are great! We don’t have a lot of houses in our own neighborhood and no sidewalks—double lots in a rural village that eventually merged with Joplin. It’s great to see what people all over the world are doing for inspiration. Keep up the great work everyone!
Isn’t it uplifting to see what people are doing all around the world? It was so fun putting this post together!
I LOVE THIS. I so enjoyed scrolling through all the pictures. Thanks for bringing a big smile to me today!
Thank you, Catherine! It makes my heart happy to hear that others have found this post uplifting.
This is a great post guys! Love all the beautiful art!
thanks for sharing #ThankfulThursdayEveryday
It was such a joy putting this post together. I’m so glad to hear that you enjoyed it as well.