One mum's quirky experiment using toothpaste to teach her daughter a valuable lesson has gone viral for all the right reasons.
The weekend before her 11-year-old daughter was due to start middle school, Amy Beth Gardner taught her daughter something she will never forget using just a simple tube of toothpaste.
In a post on her social media page, Gardner declared she was all set for her little one to start school but had one last thing she needed to do, so she asked her daughter Breonna to squirt a tube of toothpaste out onto a plate.
She wrote: "My daughter starts middle school tomorrow. We've decorated her locker, bought new uniforms, even surprised her with a new backpack. But tonight just before bed, we did another pre-middle school task that is far more important than the others."
She then asked Breonna to put the toothpaste back into the tube, making it look exactly as it as before.
Breonna understandably became confused and responded by exclaiming things like "But I can't!" and "It won't be like it was before!" but Gardener quietly waited for her to finish before teaching her something she will remember for the rest of her life.
Once emptied she told her then Breonna that not being able to put the toothpaste back in the tube was exactly her point.
"You will remember this plate of toothpaste for the rest of your life. Your words have the power of life or death," she wrote.
"As you go into middle school, you are about to see just how much weight your words carry."
"You are going to have the opportunity to use your words to hurt, demean, slander and wound others. You are also going to have the opportunity to use your words to heal, encourage, inspire and love others."
"You will occasionally make the wrong choice; I can think of three times this week I have used my own words carelessly and caused harm."
"Just like this toothpaste, once the words leave your mouth, you can't take them back."
"Use your words carefully, Breonna. When others are misusing their words, guard your words. Make the choice every morning that life-giving words will come out of your mouth."
"Decide tonight that you are going to be a life-giver in middle school. Be known for your gentleness and compassion. Use your life to give life to a world that so desperately needs it. You will never, ever regret choosing kindness," she concluded.
The post has been shared over two million times and parents are applauding her efforts of trying to raise a kind compassionate and caring little girl.
One said: "This is great. Sometimes demonstrations stay with us longer than just the spoken word! What we see seems to impact our memory more than what we hear. Amy, you are a wise and caring mother. I applaud you for this! Wishing you and your daughter a blessed and wonderful school year."
While another said: "That was such an amazing, awesome, statement. Not only will she remember it but I also will remember it. It is such a true statement. Once the words are out there are out. Choose your words carefully."
A third wrote: "I wish all parents use this illustration for their children. Wouldn't the world be a better place."