See Also:
Beginning of a FAMOUS Hero: The Sam Walton Story.
Life Lesson #34 – Build a Positive Work Ethic.
Lacy was excited about signing up for a service project at school this year. There were all kinds of things to do, from working in the library to working in the office. She chose to work in the cafeteria twice a week to earn extra credit. One day Lacy was working near a table where several girls were eating lunch. One of the girls asked, “What are you doing?”
“Picking up trash,” she said with a smile. That’s when one of the other girls said, “She’s picking up trash because she is trash!” The other girls began to giggle, and Lacy’s smile quickly faded and tears filled her eyes. A girl at the next table saw what had happened, and talked with Mrs. Saucier, the principal about it. Mrs. Saucier quickly called in the girls and talked with them individually. One girl said, “We were just kidding.” Mrs. Saucier said, “Did Lacy know that you were kidding?”
“No, I guess she didn’t,” said the girl. “Of course she didn’t,” said Mrs. Saucier, “because you were intending to hurt her with your words. “How would you feel if someone did that to you?”
“Not good,” said the girl as tears came to her eyes. Then the principal explained about people who hurt others and people who HELP others, and the people who HELP others are called HEROES. She said, “I know that if you would just decide to HELP others instead of hurting them, you could do a lot of good and people would respect you for that. Well, you know the girl thought about that—she liked the idea of being respected by others—and she even talked to her friends who had been laughing at Lacy with her. She used her leadership to HELP the other girls learn a better way, too. They all decided to apologize to Lacy, and pretty soon they were all HELPING in the cafeteria just like Lacy, because they chose to, not because they had to.
– Jim Lord