Mission Moment: The Right Thing.

Coming out of my office and a 10 year old boy was slumped against the wall softly crying. A teacher was standing over him trying to encourage him to move to lunch.

"What's going on?"

"He's upset but I don't know why."

Turning to the boy, I kneel down face to face and ask him why he's upset. Through choked sobs he tells me that some other boys were teasing him for doing his math work. "And what did you do?"

"I told the teacher like you told us."

"And what happened."

"Nothing."

"Nothing?"

"Nothing."

"Did they stop making fun of you?"

"Yes."

"Did you hit them or yell back?"

"No."

"Then a lot happened. You did the right thing. You are the bigger man. I am very proud of you."

"You are?"

"Yes, very proud. You did the right thing. And the right thing is hard. And the right thing can hurt like now. And crying is okay."

"It is?"

"Yes. Now how about you go into lunch and show them that you are the bigger man."

He tried his eyes, blew his nose and went to lunch. Hopefully knowing that men do cry and doing the right thing, despite how it can hurt and be hard, is always the right thing.