Credo

I have read the "Everything You Need to Know" essay many times over the last several years and I have never taken the time to sit down and write my own Credo. Finally, I am going to give it a shot. I will keep it as honest as I can so that in a few years, I can look back and reflect on who I was at the time and see if my thoughts and beliefs evolve as much as I do. Here goes..

1. I believe that we don't even come close to reaching the potential that is within our grasp.

2. I believe that I can learn anything I choose to learn, as long as I set my mind to it and work at it when it does not come easy.

3. I believe bullying is not only a school years problem. Some people never outgrow it and they bring it with them to the work place.

4. I believe that children sometimes know better than adults. As they age, they forget what they knew as a kid and slip into bad habits.

5. I believe youth is a treasure we don't appreciate until it is long gone. How I would love to have fun like a kid again.

6. I believe laughter is a cure for many things (sadness, loneliness, even some physiological diseases).

7. I believe running is a good way to empty my heart of worries while I take care of my body.

8. I believe there is a lot more beauty surrounding me than I acknowledge. It's a little like the "Take the time to smell the roses idea". We need to really look at what is in front of our eyes in order to see the beauty there.

9. I believe there is nothing more comforting than a disgustingly thick peanut butter and jam sandwich for supper.

10. I believe a little piece of heaven seeps into my dreams when I nap in the sunbeam that floods my living room on a Sunday afternoon.

Would it Kill Us?

After Reading Robert Fulghum's Credo, I am moved to look around and think about the world we live in. I mean, it's a pretty good place overall, but how easy would it be to make it even better? His first list reminds us that living a good life and being a good person is really very simple. In his second list, he points out that sometimes this is beyond our control and that outside forces make us adapt in ways we may not have forseen in the simpler list. With this in mind, I ask, "Would it kill us to..."

1. Smile at least once every day - knowing that we have so much to smile about?

2. Go out of our way to give at least one compliment to someone we care about?

3. Approach one person we don't know so well and greet them somehow?

4. Be responsible for our own actions?

5. Give a little more than we do to those who have less?

6. Take the time to represent ourselves a little better? I mean, how do we want to be remembered?

7. Keep our area clean? Whether at home, school or at work?

8. Make en effort to do our best work always?

None of these seem so difficult yet they are things that are not automatic. I believe that making the world a better place is as simple as these actions suggest. The hard part is getting everyone to buy into it. Now THAT just might kill us!