It was interesting to me that it takes courage to practice any virtue. Sometimes, I think it is easy to take goodness for granted. After all, that is the way that we are supposed to be. However, if you think about it, it can be hard to be good. It is so much easier to follow the crowd.
I have been blessed (or unblessed) to see so many examples of "group think". Where the popular person makes a bad decision and everyone else in the group follows along because they want to be popular too. They want to be accepted. They want to fit in. And, as a person who has been there, I can't blame them. But, as a mother who has had to watch her children be bullied and left out, I do blame them for that.
Kindness is hard. It is so hard for kids to stand up and be kind when the "popular" kids don't want them too. It is so hard to realize that ignoring, making fun of, gossiping, and judging are all forms of bullying. And if they hear or see their parents doing it, it is even worse. I am pretty sure that most of them don't even realize how harmful it is for them to do. And many adults excuse the behavior as "just being kids". However, I have sat of the side of the parent whose children are being bullied. I have seen the hurt in their eyes. I have had them not want to go to church or school to deal with the other children.
Maybe if we start teaching children that it is courageous to be kind and generous. Maybe if we teach them that they can be proud of having courage. Maybe then we can start to change our own little corner of the world.
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