Be nice

If we had woken up this morning and it was a home school day, today, I would
have taught the lesson BE NICE. BE KIND to others. No matter how old my boys were in this dream. We would have practiced our penmanship with those words, created puzzles, done some charity work, thought about and talked about being kind to others.

Yes, I did teach it over and over and over. Yes, I am happy to report that both #1 and #2 boys "got it". Both are without a doubt, kind and nice gentlemen.

People seem to have forgotten to be kind to one an other. Civility seems to have taken a back seat. Not just a back seat, you know that seat that was in the old station wagons in the 1970's that was in the very far back and the seats looked out the back window and made you car sick to ride or watch? That is how far our civility has gone.

Sometimes, you just have to stick your nose in. Or rather I have to stick my nose in. While we were stationed and living in Germany the newspaper called the Stars and Stripes publish an extremely sad and in very poor taste, a picture of one of our United States soldiers who had been killed and dragged through the streets of a far off country. I snapped. I wrote a letter. I did not hear back. I wrote another. I called the editor of the paper. I was over the top MAD. When I finally, like a dog with a bone, got to speak to said editor, I told him I was ashamed of his choice. There were many other choices he had to grab the reader's attention. I asked him if he had forgotten to be KIND. Was he KIND to the family of the soldier? Was he KIND to the military living far away and seeing that picture? Was he KIND to himself? Then I went for the jugular............Would your mother be proud you? EXCUSE ME? No ma'am.

A simple hello in the morning. A simple thank you or you are welcome (NOT the so often used, No problem). Just easy, quick and simple. BE NICE. BE KIND to others.
Every single one of us has a cross to bear. A burden to carry.

The time has come and long over due might I add. Would your mother be proud of your behavior? Would she be proud of you cutting someone off in traffic? Would she be proud of you bumping someone in line and not saying excuse me?

I am worried. I am worried and shaking. This is not good. We must teach our children, no matter what their ages or stages of life just how important it is to be civil and kind and nice. Yes, it seems old fashioned, yes, it seems out of date, here is a wake up call people.............the time is now.

Please if only for today, Be kind to one another. It is our way of gracing each other with the human spirit. That spirit seems to be loosing some of it's sparkle.