On Sunny Lane: We Need Everybody

As far as I know, no one from my high school graduating class has committed a crime that required incarceration.

As far as I know, no one from my high school class made incarceration a goal. Actually, who does? Mostly, their plans included going to college, getting a job, getting married, raising a family. And, actually, we did those things.

When we were children and teenagers, older people did all of those things. Gradually, we began to take part in society in large and small ways. The decisions we made and the actions we took kept the wheels of progress turning.

Some of us had great aspirations and made a big difference in a lot of lives. We became teachers and doctors and nurses. Some of us made a difference in only a few lives.

When Sweetheart and I meet someone new, he asks the person, “What are you famous for?” Most people will say they are not famous for anything. I say that is the wrong attitude. Everyone is “famous” for something. Baking cookies for shut-ins is something that people will remember a person for. If you are a good carpenter or crafter, that makes you stand out. A person who calls to make welfare checks or sends cards for every, or no, occasion holds a special place in people’s memory. There are no small parts in this world we live in.

I once knew a young woman whose name was Destiny. I thought her mother must have had high hopes for what she would do in life and what she would become. The last time I saw her, she was living with a young man who was mentally challenged in a run-down trailer that was physically challenged. It was probably not the life her mother had hoped for her, but it could very well have been her destiny.

What makes some people want to be doctors or teachers or lawyers, while others want to be dog catchers or street sweepers or house cleaners? I believe each person is born with special talents and abilities that steer him or her into the direction that fulfills their role in the great scheme of things. To make the world function like a well-oiled machine, we need people with talents and abilities of all kinds.

I believe we are also born with the ability to know what is a good thing to do and what is a bad thing to do and the ability to choose.I wonder what people who break the law could have done with their talents if they had chosen to do good.

And I wonder what the world will be like as we hand it over to new graduating classes around the country.

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Dorothy is the author of two books—“Miles and Miracles” and “Getting It All Together “. You can purchase a book or send a comment by emailing her at dorothybutzknight@gmail.com