Sometimes in life we come across some profound wisdom that sounds so simple we wonder if it is really true. A few years ago I heard about a Japanese scientist, Dr Emotto, who had taken photographs of water crystals to illustrate the effects of loving thoughts on water - when loving thoughts are sent to water, beautiful crystals are formed, and when thoughts of hate are sent the crystal turns murky, dark and horrible. Given that the human body is approximately seventy per cent water, he extrapolated that the thoughts we have about ourselves and others have a profound effect on us. Within a few weeks of reading Dr Emotto’s book, Love Thyself, I had an opportunity to test his theories for myself…

At the age of seven, my eldest son, Macdara, moved into a new class in school. Macdara didn’t really know the new pupils and was a little fearful of the move. However, we trusted that he would settle in after a while. A few weeks into his new class there was an incident with another boy, whom I will call Gregory.

Gregory was a bit of a bully and decided to pick on Macdara by kicking and pushing him. Macdara, already feeling vulnerable in his new class, became quite upset. The teacher found out and made Gregory apologise. When I arrived to collect my son, the teacher told me about the incident. “It’s all sorted now.”

Of course my first reaction was probably the instinctual one of most parents – to send some ‘attack thoughts’ to that little bully, Gregory! However, I trusted what the teacher said and hoped that was the end of it.  A few weeks later I was again collecting my children from school. When I saw Macdara coming I knew straight away there was something up. My daughter, Michaela, told me Gregory had kicked Macdara during lunchtime, and made him cry. I decided to wait until we got home before I asked Macdara about it and, as before, my thoughts towards Gregory were anything but positive. 

As I drove home I wondered about it all. Had we done the right thing putting Macdara in that Class? Should I talk to the teacher and Gregory’s parents? Should I let Macdara sort it out himself? I thought about Gregory. I wondered what led children to display that type of behaviour. Maybe he is beaten up at home, I thought. Maybe he feels like he is hated and no one loves him. If that was the case then the last thing Gregory needed was another person sending him hateful, vengeful thoughts, which feed the very behaviour that needs to change! 

I recalled some of Dr Emotto’s wisdom and decided to put it to the test. One of the prayers Dr Emotto recommends saying for others, and indeed ourselves, is: [person’s name] I love you; [person’s name] I thank you; [person’s name] I respect you. Of course I had no idea what this would do. Was it just a load of rubbish, or could it really make a difference? I decided to believe it, affirm it and trust the universe to do the rest. It was certainly worth a try! I also decided not to tell anyone except my eldest daughter, Michaela, so she would also be a witness to whatever happened.

For a number of weeks I affirmed, ‘Gregory I love you; Gregory I thank you; Gregory I respect you’, any time I thought of the bullying incidents or Gregory. I also let go of any attachments to results. I simply kept saying the prayer when I thought of Gregory. Some weeks later when I was collecting Macdara from school, he looked up at me with a contented smile on his face. 

Remember, I hadn’t told him anything about the prayer I was sending to Gregory. “Daddy, here’s a note,” he said, looking up at me. I took it and looked at it. It was a child’s handwritten note that read: To Macdara, I’m really sorry for kicking you, from Gregory. Well, I was indeed taken aback and positively amazed. I embraced Macdara as I held back my tears. What a revelation! I guess The Beatles were right when they sang, ‘all you need is love’.

Since then I have often overheard some of the schoolchildren saying that Gregory isn’t a bully anymore.