| At school you
have probably seen the word Kindness on a poster taped up on a wall
in one of the hallways. But do you really know what it means to be
kind?
When
I was a young boy I lost my dog. He was a black cocker spaniel/
beagle mix,  his
name was Corky. He was a loving dog who would always give me kisses
on my face with his snake-like tongue. Once he tried to clean off
the peanut butter that had stuck to my cheek from my sandwich. The
peanut butter then stuck to his tongue and it took a lot of licking
before it dissolved in his mouth. Corky and I were best of friends,
I used to throw him the Frisbee and he would run and jump three
feet in the air to get it. He was also a great outfielder when we
played baseball in our backyard.
When
I was happy, Corky was happy. When I was sad Corky would lay his
head on my belly and give me comfort. Everyday he gave me love and
kindness. If I lost my shoes he would help me find them or if I
didn’t wake up when the alarm clock rang in the morning he
would lick my feet, tickling me until I was awake.
 One
day I left him out in the backyard not knowing the fence gate was
left open. When I called him he didn’t come. I ran up and
down the street but I couldn’t find him. There were a group
of kids down the street on their bikes and they heard me calling
his name. They asked me if I needed help. I didn’t even know
these kids and they were offering to help find my dog. I told them
what he looked like and they all separated going up and down the
neighboring streets.
Fifteen
minutes went by and there was no sign of him; thirty minutes and
still no Corky. I was sad thinking I may never see him again. Then
I heard the kids on their bikes screaming in unison, “WE
FOUND HIM!” I turned around and saw the bikes riding
in formation almost like Canadian geese. The leader had a big basket
on the front of his bike and in it was Corky. He looked like ET
with dark hair and a pink tongue hanging out. I ran to him and he
jumped out of the basket into my arms, licking the tears of joy
from my face.
That
day I learned what the word kindness means. Here were kids from
all over the neighborhood, many who didn’t know me and I didn’t
know them. Together they threw down their hockey sticks, baseball
gloves and jump ropes to stop what they were doing to help find
another kids dog. That’s what kindness is. It is helping someone
who needs you. It is being polite to your teachers and parents.
It is being nice to your classmates and friends. It is holding the
door for someone or knowing not to talk when someone else is talking.
Kindness doesn’t begin with someone else it begins with you.
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