Theme: Forgiveness, understanding

Let it go, it happens!

Matthew and his friends loved soccer and every weekend they got together to play on the neighborhood field. They didn't always play with a proper ball. Most of the time, the fun took place with any ball, even a deflated ball would do.

But that day, the boys were excited because they were going to use Lucas' ball. The ball was a spectacle. It was new and official. The boys ran, made good moves, and gave each strong kick to try.

Both teams had good moves and scored several goals. At one point, Matthew got the ball and wanted to throw it forward to start a counterattack. So, he kicked really hard.

But he was already very tired, and the kick ended up going wrong. The ball got up really high and went to a direction that nobody expected. It fell into the factory grounds, which was next to the little field.

The factory was closed, as no one worked there on the weekend. And there were two huge guard dogs who, without delay, bit the ball and spoiled it all.

It was a misery for the boys. In a few seconds, the excitement of the new ball turned to sadness. There was nothing to do. Some put their hands on their heads, some looked at Lucas and others at Matthew.

Matthew was devastated. He tried to yell at the dogs to stop, but it didn´t work. He felt so bad that he almost started to cry. He apologized in embarrassment, not daring to look at Lucas.

Nobody knew what to say. They were sad for losing the ball, but they realized that Matthew's sadness was even greater than theirs, because he was the one who kicked the ball.

Suddenly, Lucas, seeing his friend's embarrassment, said smiling:

— Yeah, guys, playing with a good ball is cool, but a really good team plays with anything. Tomorrow, we play again with Jonas's rubber ball, agreed?

The boys laughed. Lucas went to Matthew and gave him a hug saying:

— It doesn't matter, Matthew. Don’t worry! That happens.

Matthew felt relieved and was very grateful to Lucas and the entire team for treating him with understanding. In a minute, he went from sadness to joy, as he realized that he had special friends, and that Lucas was a really nice guy.

The matter was settled, and they left.

But the story didn't end there. When he got home, Matthew wanted to rest and listen to music he liked. He looked for his headset but couldn't find it.

He was already getting tired of looking when his brother Marcos entered his room.

— Matthew are you looking for your headset? — he said, worried.

— I am, why, Marcos?

— It's just that Juca came here today so we could play on the computer, but the headset he brought wasn't working. So, I lent yours to him.

— All right. But where did you leave my headset?

— So... That's the problem! Unintentionally, Juca changed the headphones. He left his broken one here and took yours, by mistake, to his house. He called me and said he'd drop me off at school tomorrow, okay? — Marcos explained, already expecting the scolding he would take.

But, to his surprise, Matthew didn't fight. He just said:

— No problem, Marcos, never mind. That happens!

Marcos couldn't believe his brother's calm reaction. But he was very grateful. What happened was that Lucas's understanding made Matthew feel so good that he wanted to do the same with his brother.

And so, even with these setbacks, the day ended very well for everyone. After all, kindness breeds kindness. Kindness attracts kindness. And it's not things, but good feelings that build peace and happiness.

Translation:
Larissa Martine - larissa_am@hotmail.com

marcelapradacontato@gmail.com