Photo Cred. Canada.com

Today after a workout I realized spring was soon on its way and with spring it’s a tradition that the Danish National TV shows one of my favorite childhood shows Anne of Green Gable. It has become a tradition and a nice way to welcome spring.

Just thinking about the show makes me so happy and excited and I start wondering what it was about the show that actually made me so excited.

My first thought was the obvious love story between Anne Shirley and Gilbert Blythe, childhood crush that finally ends up together. But it wasn’t that, as I wondered it came to me that it was the character of Anne, her fearlessness, and courage.

Growing up there were a lot of shows with strong girl leads,
Anne Of Green Gables, Pippi Longstocking,  Heidi, The Secret Garden, Three Chestnuts for Cinderella, Gone With The Wind etc.
All girls that weren’t afraid of standing out, being themselves, speaking up or going against the stream.

These shows have made a huge impact on the way I am and the way I have chosen to live. I’m really happy that I got the chance of growing up with such amazing role models and such strong leads, something about 80ties shows were just incredible.

Why it is important to make our girls strong, read here.

*Side note; Some might notice that there are only white leads in these shows. I grew up in Denmark and at that time diversity didn’t exist.

Without further ado here are 5 things I learned from Anne of Green Gable.

1. If you want it strong enough you will get it.

From the first time we meet Anne, she has a wild imagination and she usually spends most of her life in a fantasy world.

Two of her biggest wishes was:
1. To have a family and a safe home
2. Have a  Bosom friend, a kindred spirit

In the show we see both of her wishes come true,. This has taught me is that if you want something strong enough you will have it.

Anne vividly saw in her “mind movie” the life that she truly wants and eventually ends up getting it. That is exactly what you can use visualization for; all you need to do is to spend 15 min a day, preferably in the morning to sit and visualize the life that you truly want. See it in your mind as living and vividly as you can and then go about your day as it has already happened. Before you know it, you are living the life you visualized.

2. Don’t expect everyone to like you

This is such an important lesson to learn. Everyone wants to be loved and liked, but that is not always the case. There will always be someone who doesn’t like you or care about you and that’s just the way it is.
The sooner you learn the lesson the easier it will be to accept it.

Instead of focusing on who doesn’t like you, appreciate those people in your life that love and care for you.
The more you appreciate the people that love you, the more those you love will come into your life.

3. Friendship, if you meet your kindred-spirit, never let go.

I love the friendship between Anne and Diana, here are two girls that are so different and yet come together so beautifully.
What makes their friendship so beautiful is that they just accept each other for who they are,, without any hesitation or expectations.

Many times when we are surrounded by friends, we often feel alone or not really understood. The reason can be that we are trying to live up to others expectation of “the friendship” we are having.

You can find comfort in friendships like that, but as you grow as a person, You will find ourselves disconnected.

Stick to the friends that make you feel good, that fills you up in a positive way.
Friends who you have a deep and meaningfully connection with and who loves you without hesitation and expectation, for who you are,  be it good or bad.

And you have a kindred- spirit for life.

Make sure if your child watch something, that it is not damaging them, read more here.

4. Never forget the child in you

Even when Anne was all grown up she always stayed a child at heart. The things I loved about her was that she was always so curious about life and about knowledge about the world. She was always happy and grateful at heart, and always fought tirelessly for what she wanted without ever giving up.

In her own way, she set a great example. If you want something in life, fight for it tirelessly and never give up.

5. Speak up

If you don’t express what you want, how will people know?

Anne was never afraid of speaking her mind, even if it brought her trouble. Her speaking up was also what saved her time to time. Another thing her speaking up did was to help change the environment she was living in.

In that era, women were housekeepers. Their goal in life was to get married and have a good household. They didn’t have the opportunity to do what they want with their life.

Anne worked towards changing that, by becoming a teacher and then a published author. This was a rarity at that time but she did it and she became an inspiration to her students and the girls in the town of Avonlea.

Speak up! Let your voice be heard, YOU have the final say onhow you want your life to be.

Be the change you want to see in the world.

This is some of the things I learn from Anne of Green Gable. What do you think of Anne Shirley and what has this show/book taught you?

Let me know in the comments below.