BE CAREFUL WITH YOUR WORDS

          One day we visited an orphanage. It was a well-cared for orphanage with altogether some thirty girls and twenty boys. Most of them were between six and twelve years old.

We were entertaining these children. We sang and played games. Some were even shrilling happily. All the children seemed very happy but one. This boy was sitting in the corner of the hall by himself.  He was sobbing.

I came to him and asked him to join the rest, but he did not want to. This made me curious to know what had happened and later I found out that he was an invalid.  One of his legs was smaller than the other one.  I really wanted to know if there was any relation between his exclusion from the others company and his physical condition.  Unfortunately, it turned out to be true.

Actually, Stephanus, the boy question had tried to join the first game we had had. He was as happy as the other children. However, as soon as he prepared to take part in the game, some of his friends told him not to do that.  “Hey, you will break your small leg,” they said.  It was, of course, quite a shock for Stephanus to hear that.  It really hurt him and made him go to the corner where he sat alone.  He was so hurt, sad, and lonely that tears and being alone were the only consolations.  There was no mother or father who would listen to him and friends who wanted to play with him.  All of his problem he had to undergo by himself t his very early age; he was just six.

          You see, children are often innocent.  They do not really relize that ometimes what they say can hurt other people.  It is our duty to hep them to learn what is good nd bad.  In other words how to behave towards others.