Think before you act
   
 

Louie was a mischievous young boy so his mother scolded him whenever he did anything wrong. Pulling the cat's tail, fighting with his sister, arguing with colleagues at school, dismantling the bike, breaking the stereo, among other things. When reprimanded and realizing what he had done, Louie would say:

- Sorry, Mom. I did it without thinking. Before I knew it, I had done it!

Therefore, the mother needed to be always attentive to what Louie was doing. That day, after yet another mischief and tired of his pranks, his mother told him very seriously:

- My son, you need to think more about what to do. You are eight years-old and can not act as a three year-old! ...

Feeling guilty, he explained:

- I know, Mom. But before I knew it … I had done it!

- This is exactly the point, Louie, you need to think before doing things. After we do something, there is no turning back. For example: yesterday you got on the roof of the house; you could have fallen and gotten seriously injured! The other day, hidden, you lit a match and set fire to a pile of old stuff that you did not want in your room.

And if I did not see it, you could have burned our house! Fortunately, I smelled smoke and managed to extinguish the fire before it caused major damage! And the other day ...

- Enough, Mom! I know you're right. I have acted very badly. I promise I will not misbehave again. I'll try to improve - the boy said.

- Okay, my son. This is an important decision. Pray to Jesus and ask for help. You will certainly be helped, as long as you really want to improve. But before you do anything, think: Would I like it if someone did that to me?

And that's what the boy did. That night, before bed, he asked Jesus to alert him when he was about to do something wrong. So when Louie woke up the next morning, he thought:

- Today I will do everything right, like my mom taught me. Jesus will help me!

Full of good intentions, Louie left the house. On the street, walking to school, he saw Amanda, a colleague he did not like, in front of him. He had the impulse to pull her hair and run. When he was with his hand outstretched, Louie remembered what his mother had said, and thought: If I were in her place would I like it if this was done to me? No, I would not! Then he lowered his arm. The girl saw him, he smiled at her, they started talking and  walked together to school.

And, after all, Amanda was not as boring as he had thought. She was actually very friendly! ...

During recess, Louie saw George. He had a sandwich in his hand and was about to eat it. At that moment, he felt like throwing the colleague's lunch on the floor, only to see his reaction. But suddenly, he thought better and stopped, lowering his arm. As he was near George, he sat beside the boy and they started talking. Then he learned that George was very poor and his mother had prepared that sandwich to be eaten for breakfast, but he preferred to take it to eat at school in order to feel like the other kids. Louie asked:

- George, you're a nice guy! Why do you isolate yourself from the other colleagues? - It's because I'm too shy. But I like to chat, just like we are doing now! They went on to the slide and had loads of fun. Soon  recess ended and they returned to their classroom, but now they were friends. Returning home, Louie saw a street dog and wanted to kick it. Realizing his intent, the animal curled up against the wall, full of fear. But, once again, the boy thought about what he was going to do, and

stopped. Seeing the frightened dog, he bent down and gave it a cuddle. The puppy, now with a different expression, looked at him, licked his hand and  snuggled up between his legs. Full of pity, Louie took his new friend home.

The mother was surprised to see his son come home with the dog, but the boy explained:

- Mother, I found this puppy on the street. Apparently, it has no owner. Can I keep it?

- Yes, you can, my child. But you will be responsible for it. It will depend on you.

- What's its name?

- Spotty. Mom, did you see how it became my friend?

- It's true. Whenever we do good things, good things come back to us.

And friendship is one of them!

Louie thought for a moment, then told her about his day:

- You're right, Mom. Today I awoke with the purpose of doing everything right and still, almost put everything to lose. But when I was about to do something wrong, something warned me and I thought about the words you said to me last night, that is, to put myself in the other person's place. And that's what I did! ...

And he told his mother everything that had happened, ending by saying:

- Thanks to the fact that I behaved well, I did everything right and won three new friends today: Amanda, who was not as boring as I thought; George, who did not talk to me because he is very shy, but I found out to be very nice. And finally, my dear Spotty, who found a home. For all that, I'm happy, Mom! … I am at peace with myself and others! ...And all in one day! ...

The mother smiled, involving the child in a big and affectionate embrace.

- I understand what you are feeling, my son. This is peace of conscience. So let's say a prayer and thank Jesus for the day you had today. And that future days are also full of blessings.

Meimei

 

(Psychographed by Celia X. de Camargo, on 07/04/2011.)