The weight of the Example

In Maltese we have a saying: "L-Ezempju jkaxkar" which means that what we do, the way we behave will be reflected in the behaviour of others especially those near us.  A clear example is the case of children.  Children learn how to behave by imitating the behaviour they see, they learn to speak by repeating the words they hear.  Needless to say this will take place both when the behaviour is or is not appropriate. Unfortunately, the spreading of bad behaviour is likely to occur much more quickly.

Yesterday night I was watching "American History X" which depicted a clear example of how one only needs a single person to help them change their mind, a single person suffice to help you see things differently.  I don't want to ruin the film for anyone who hasn't watched it yet.  I will only say one thing, it deals with the issue of racism.  Just go see it I'm sure you'll enjoy it.  Why I am mentioning this you might ask? Simply because as portrayed by the film, ONE PERSON CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE, and each one of us can easily be the person that makes that difference.  We can be the people that help others move forward by building bridges, showing them that if we understand one another things will be better.  "Hate is baggage. Life is too short to be pissed off all the time.  It's just not worth it."  Abraham Lincoln once said: "We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory will swell when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature."

We've always seen how when a country faces some kind of natural disaster, like the earthquake today in New Zealand, other countries try to help in whichever means they can.  It starts with one country and then others follow suite, all willing to give that something that can help in that moment of need.  These last couple of weeks has seen Arabic country after Arabic country rising up demanding more human and civil rights.  It started from one person, one country and it soon flared up, inspiring others.  Now we have to be cautious.  Talks should take place and people should listen to each other and engage in conversations and dialogue rather than use force trying to silence people who do not agree with what we're saying.  The way forward is through civilized dialogue.  Remember it takes only one person to set the example and others will follow suite. So lets make sure that the example people follow is a peaceful one so that we avoid unnecessary trouble and unnecessary deaths.