What Matters Most

 In Happy Tails, the animals take center stage while my husband, Bill, and I fade happily into the background where we take on more of a supportive role. As a writer attempting to reach out to young readers, this was a natural choice for me, because I’ve yet to know a child who didn’t respond favorably to a puppy’s kisses or a kitten’s purr.

Animals are simple. They are motivated by the basic need to find food and shelter while working to secure the love and affection of their families. Human beings on the other hand, are more complicated. Growing up, I’ve often found people can be motivated by any number of emotions and desires. For instance, I studied all the time, because it was important to me to make good grades. Other sports-minded students trained and practiced in an effort to perfect their game.

But not all motivations are pure of heart. Some people are unkind, because they don’t want to reveal their own insecurities. As a result, fear becomes the driving force behind everything they do. Another might play the class clown, because he or she has a dread of not being liked by their classmates. Oftentimes, when someone bullies others without considering the possible outcome, it’s because they want to control everyone and everything around them. Who knows why? Perhaps it’s because they live in an unhappy home. Should this happen to you, the best thing to do is confide in parents, teachers and friends who can protect you from harm. It’s never a good idea to try and go it alone.

What matters most is the basic understanding that everything we say and do has consequences. Our words and actions have the power to warm a cold heart and heal dampened spirits. But some who may feel wounded inside for one reason or another may act out in bad ways toward others. While their damaging behavior cannot be tolerated, it at least needs to be understood, because understanding opens the door to change.
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Taking responsibility for your behavior has the power to raise you up as a human being making you important to all who know you. Plus, you will never have to apologize for saying and doing the right thing.