As a happy follow-up to an earlier story I shared, I wanted to remind you that there are many parents who are obviously raising their kids to be mindful of their roles as members of a community.
While the first story reflected on parents who missed an opportunity to train their kids to be community-minded–and just plain decent–people, this one was prompted by a little boy I observed cleaning up not just his own breakfast mess, but also those of his mother and father. He even grabbed some napkins, wet them with the hot water at the coffee bar, and then wiped the whole table clean.
This thoughtful little guy could not have been more than five-years-old, yet his parents had already taught him that it’s good to clean up your own messes.
His parents treated him as though they valued him, thanking and praising him for his great work and help.
And the boy beamed with pride, confident that he fit in and his parents valued him.
Even seemingly small things are huge.
Teach your children.