Good Guys do Good Things
While we try to limit the television our sons consume, the tube has already influenced their early interpretations of what is good and bad in the world. The shows they watch, for example, all have good and bad characters. Any show must have these elements—that’s the drama of storytelling. What’s amazing is how quickly kids integrate said elements into their everyday lives.
My sons, for example, know that police officers keep the peace and uphold the laws, while on the other end of the spectrum, criminals do bad things like steal and cheat. They know that if someone tries to make them feel bad or intimidate them, that that person is a bully. They also know that their teachers and doctors and babysitters care for them.
But while it may seem easy to assign white and black hats to the caricatures and authority figures in the community, I’m reminded—as I teach my sons—that deeds and behaviors matter much more than the uniform or title someone wears.
Good guys do good things. They are respectful and helpful, courteous and courageous. Bad guys lie, mistreat others, they disrespect animals and the environment, and they aren’t trustworthy. Just because someone appears to be good and friendly doesn’t always mean they are. It’s a little disheartening that we have to teach our children this way of the world, but these are the times we live in. People have too many opportunities to be play too many roles at any given moment, and you never know which one they’re inhabiting.
It’s true we all do bad things sometimes, and, as the saying goes, just because you do bad things doesn’t make you a bad person. But in an era where the human contract is eroding as fast as its written, let’s challenge ourselves to be good guys. Let’s put that old fixation with bad guys to rest.
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Photo by Volkan Olmez on Unsplash