be nice

Navigating the world these days is no easy task for children; it is beyond tragic that a child of any age can no longer get an education without the potential threat of various forms of harm hovering on their path. Violent reactions for the smallest things, over what seemingly is nothing are exponentially more pervasive than when I attended grammar, middle, high and undergraduate school years ago. So many children today lack adequate social skills due to overuse of TV time, computers and cell phones not to mention the prevalence of negative behavioral messages received from the same sources. Gone are the days when parents only need warn us to be nice and we got the message.

Someone close to me is dealing with roommate issues, a very unpleasant something I experienced when I was at university. At first, I struggled to find nurturing words of understanding, encouragement and support to share with her. I knew the root of what I wanted to say…wrote, read, deleted, paused, started again, stopped a bit frustrated because in moments like this, we want to choose our words carefully and then as clear as a crystal ball came "we win when our wisdom prevails no matter the circumstance" to drive home this point -- pick your battles. There is nothing cowardly about deciding to walk away from a negative situation before it escalates head held high; the opportunity to stand your ground will come around again, the time and situation perfect to do so.

Coexistence, tolerance, patience, respect, peace…easy words with principles that too many find too hard to practice. Brings to mind a combination of phrases and questions of my generation -- we must teach our children well so we can all just get along and play nice in the sandbox.

keep your peepers open!®