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MAXIMize the Moment Volume 1, Issue 13

MAXIMize the Moment Volume 1, Issue 13

January 21, 2002
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MAXIMize the Moment

Now it's time to MAXIMize the Moment!

Chris was late to the team meeting yesterday. He's late a lot, but, it's not his fault; usually somebody on the team picks on him or hides his uniform to make him late. Chris is one of those kids who seems a lot younger than his age and is kind of fragile.

Chris practically worships the ground that Johnny, our team captain, walks on. I guess that's why Johnny gets so many opportunities to pick on him. Take yesterday, for example. Chris could have asked anyone what time the bus is leaving on Saturday. Who did he pick? Johnny. Johnny--who never lets a chance go to waste.

"Chris, Coach said to be at school by 9:00. He's sick of us being late, so people who don't come on time are getting left. I'm planning on being here by 8:30—just in case."

Poor Chris. In reality, Coach told us to be at school at 10:15. I can just imagine Chris sitting in the parking lot waiting, getting nervous, maybe even starting to cry.

Still, it's not my responsibility to protect him from Johnny, I think as I walk into Mr. Potts's History class. Today's quote is by Martin Luther King, Jr. It says, "He who passively accepts evil is as much involved in it as he who helps perpetrate it."

We discuss the quote and the Civil Rights Movement. We talk about the people who struggled to end segregation and who risked their lives to make America a more just nation. Then Mr. Potts asks us to raise our hands if we think we would have had the courage to fight oppression, to walk to work rather than sitting on the back of the bus, and to have people threaten us because of our beliefs. Most people are confident that they would have done the right thing.

But not me. Just yesterday, I had the chance to be courageous, to stand up for someone who was being mistreated. And did I? No—it would have been too much trouble. I didn't want to get in the middle of things. Now, I see how wrong I was. I'm to blame, too, because I am letting a jerk like Johnny be the lone voice.

But, today, I can start to make things right. I'll set Chris straight about the time for Saturday. And I'll try to get Johnny to ease up on him. It's going to be a challenge, but it's something I have to do. I refuse to sit by and let evil happen because "He who passively accepts evil is as much involved in it as he who helps perpetrate it."

This week's maxim is "He who passively accepts evil is as much involved in it as he who helps perpetrate it."

Teacher Information

Maxim

"He who passively accepts evil is as much involved in it as he who helps perpetrate it."
Martin Luther King, Jr.

Featured character trait

  • Courage— I am willing to do what is difficult.

Character points (for substitution if this week's trait isn't one of your school's core values)

  • Fortitude — I have the strength to live by my convictions.
  • Leadership — I am able to take charge and strive to be a good example.
  • Responsibility — I recognize my duty and honor it.
  • Respect — I acknowledge the innate dignity of each person and my actions reflect my beliefs.

Discussion starters / journal writing prompts

  • Does today's scenario seem like something that would happen at our school?
  • Why do you think that Johnny treated Chris like that?
  • How do you think that Chris feels when people treat him cruelly?
  • Should the narrator have stepped in earlier?
  • Since most people know how bad it feels to be picked on, why don't they do more? Why do people let teasing and bullying happen?
  • What are some ways that the narrator could confront Johnny? What might he have said to convince Johnny to be kinder to Chris?
  • What other kinds of things could the narrator do to help Chris?
  • List some examples of people who you consider to be "courageous" and explain your choices.
  • List some examples of acts of courage that you have witnessed at this school. What was brave about those actions?
  • What does it mean to be "courageous" in your life today? What are some ways that you personally are called to show courage in your everyday life?
  • How does this week's quote relate to America's War on Terrorism? Is it valid or not to use King's sentiment to defend the President's concern about nations which harbor terrorists, in addition to the terrorists themselves?

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