“Do we know where we are going?” asked the boy. “Not really,” said the mole. “Are we lost then?” “No,” said the fox, “Because we have each other.”
From Always Remember, by Charlie Mackesy
The boy, the fox, the mole and the horse are on a journey that takes them through many lessons and storms. Some little books, like this one and, What You Know First, might be categorized as children’s stories but don’t be fooled. They contain all the wisdom we need to weather life’s trials.
Our nation, and our world, seem pretty dangerous. We forget that it has always been so, and also that the only changes for good happen in the hearts of those who keep taking the next step, even when that one step is only as far as they can see.
Are we going to believe the naysayers who believe shouting and violence are helpful and promote mob rule? Or will we find a few companions who are willing to trust that there is blue sky ahead, and that holding onto one another and admitting how scared we are is really a badge of bravery? Strength is an inside job.
The characters in Always Remember are not much alike, except in their compassion and efforts to understand one another. The people of our nation are likewise diverse in many ways but, unlike the boy, the mole, the fox and the horse, we’re determined to focus on our differences instead of working together to find solutions. We choose up sides like kids in a schoolyard game and tell ourselves that winning depends on which group can be the toughest and loudest. We won’t admit, even to ourselves, that the one who makes the most fuss is the most afraid. Or that winning doesn’t count if injuries are part of the process.
Fred Rogers said that deep down we know what matters in this life is more than winning for ourselves. What really matters is helping others win too, even if it means slowing down and changing our course now and then.
As we get into the story of these unlikely companions the boy admits that he worries because he doesn’t think he’s very good at anything. The mole tells him, “You are kind, which is everything.”
My husband gave me a plaque that says, “You’re stuck with me. Deal with it.” Not a hard assignment, because kindness is the essence of Bruce’s personality. We humans are stuck with each other, and dealing with that often involves collateral damage. There has to be a better way. I believe we all know this, or would know it, if we listened to our hearts and not to the voices that preach group think.
Rogers again, “We are intimately related. May we never even pretend that we are not.”
Meet me here next week and do your best to be kind. It’s everything.