Rumor Seeds

"There goes Jade, the new girl," Hadley said to her friends at recess. "I saw her dad pick her up at school yesterday. He has a big scar on his face and looks like a criminal.""What do you think he did?" asked Grace. Hadley shrugged. "Who knows? Robbed a bank maybe."As Hadley slid into her seat after recess, she heard Grace whisper to Payton, "Don't play with Jade--her dad's a bank robber."The rumor flew and grew until nearly everyone in the class was whispering about Jade and avoiding her. A little voice in Hadley's heart said, Hadley, what have you done? But she tried not to listen.When Hadley got home, she sprawled out on the lawn to enjoy the sunshine. She saw a dandelion that had gone to seed, so she picked it and blew on it. The seeds floated off into the air like dozens of tiny parachutes. "Oh dear!" said Mom, who had come out with a glass of lemonade. "Those little seeds are going to take root and create more pesky dandelions!""Oops!" said Hadley. "Sorry, but it's impossible to pick them back up. They're gone for good!"Mom sat down in a lawn chair. "Well, if you hadn't blown them, the wind would have." She took a sip of her lemonade. "Those little seeds always remind me of words. Once words come out of our mouths, they're gone for good too. The good ones build people up, but the bad ones tear them down." Hadley squirmed as she remembered what she had said about Jade's father. "Before we say anything," continued Mom, "we should ask ourselves, 'Is what I'm about to say true? Is it helpful to anybody? Does it sound like something Jesus would say?' He always speaks the truth to us in love, and He'll help us do the same."The little nagging voice of Hadley's conscience seemed to be shouting now. Her words about Jade's dad were definitely not kind or loving. They weren't even true! And even though she couldn't take back her words, she knew she had to do her best to make it right.Hadley sighed as she got up and headed for the house. "I'm going inside," she told her mom. "I've got some texting to do." -Matilda H. Nordtvedt