by William Arthur Ward
This bright new year is given me
To live each day with zest
To daily grow and try to be
My highest and my best!
I have the opportunity
Once more to right some wrongs,
To pray for peace, to plant a tree,
And sing more joyful songs!
A lot of years ago, my sister and I sat in a train, looking at life on the platform, while we were waiting for the train to start moving. We saw an alarmingly fat person with a broom, cleaning up after us passengers.
Not thinking twice, I said to my sister – probably a little too loud – “It looks like that man has swallowed a TV”. With us being inside the train, and him walking outside, he shouldn’t be able to hear that. But yet he turned round looking straight at me, with a very sad expression. I don’t know if he heard me, or just happened to turn around and see a very stupid kid (me) sitting there looking at him.
Normally I do not make fun of other people. Partly because I don’t like to hurt other people, but mostly because I tend to be a bit longsighted when it comes to people: I don’t focus so much on the exterior; maybe because I’m no model myself. I think that’s the reason why I still remember this so vividly.
I really hope you’ll act more intelligent than I did, and treat other people with decency, even if they have flaws and you don’t.
This day started with frosty mist and plants with ice.
