2 4 S p i r i t ua l i t y S t u d i e s 2 - 2 Fa l l 2 0 1 6 months previously, knowing that it would have meaning and use eventually). The square, 4x4 volume contains beautifully illustrated inspirational quotes from both established and developing artists. I carefully removed pages from the book, trimmed edges nicely, and mounted them on complimentary card stock. I then wrote my acknowledgement message on the reverse. In each instance, I chose a quote that I deemed meaningful to the recipient. Figure 1 illustrates an assortment of my handwritten letters. These letters continued daily – even over the winter holidays. Figure 1. Acknowledgement cards Some of the acknowledgement letters were delivered via traditional mail service, while others were hand delivered. In order to retrieve postal addresses that I did not already possess, I found communication via Facebook messenger most helpful. Many of my former students were my Facebook friends, therefore connecting via the messenger application facilitated contact even with those who had moved subsequent to graduating from university. Similarly, some friends had moved across North America or overseas. Letters were mailed to San Francisco, New Orleans, Boston, and Dallas, amongst many other locations. In more local context, many of the recipients of my acknowledgements were friends from the yoga studio in which I practice; I hand-delivered most of these cards. Acknowledgements to current students were exclusively hand delivered. The acknowledgements to current students were an important part of this project, though when I began the project I did not explicitly think that I would go in this direction. Early in January, I wrote a heartfelt acknowledgement to Dan, a former student, letting him know that I remembered the remarkable work that he had done in the Public Speaking class in which he was enrolled some five years previously. When he was a student, I created certificates from an online template, and recognized every student at some point throughout the semester. For example, students received “awards” for creative delivery, an outstanding introduction, or a memorable conclusion to their speeches. Dan still had the award certificate that I had written for him five years earlier – he emailed me a photo of the certificate above his desk! I realized that these certificates were forms of acknowledgement, and decided to incorporate the same practice again in this winter semester. Throughout my acknowledgement experiment, I printed off a blank “award” and entered a custom statement, and then wrote, on the reverse and by hand, a letter to the student outlining what he or she had done that I found memorable or meaningful. Figure 2 illustrates a certificate to a first year student in the course of this project (for confidentiality purposes, an image of the letter that I wrote to my student is not included). Figure 2. Acknowledgement certificate for a student In creating both acknowledgement letters and student “certificates”, I was mindful that the acknowledgement should be different from an expression of gratitude. I acknowledged students for excellent work, attitude, or participation. I acknowledged friends for inspiring conduct, decisions, or personal achievements. In a few instances, someone did something kind for me. For example, an academic friend, John, offered me very helpful feedback on a manuscript in progress. In this case, I could have written him a thank-you letter, as Kralik (2011, 2012) did in his gratitude experiment. Rather, I chose to recognize John’s breadth of knowledge, willingness to spend time in reading and reflection, and his clear and kind way of expressing constructive comments on my work. In this manner, the letter was more about John and his skill and kindness rather than the benefits to myself. This is the spirit in which I conducted this experiment in its entirety.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MzgxMzI=