Planting Seeds

Sometimes I wonder about the job I'm doing teaching my kids to care about their world and the less fortunate people in it. After all, with busy schedules and periods of time when we have been heavily focused on my jobless situation, there has not always been a lot of time or energy to look outside ourselves. Once upon a time, I was an active volunteer, but that was largely pre-children. So, am I teaching my children anything about their responsibilities in the world? About what they can do to make other lives better? I wonder.
 
And then, from time to time, I see that maybe a little something has gotten through. When my son writes his story for school featuring a child who is homeless, I realize maybe something has gotten through. When my daughter joins not the Glee Club, but multiple community service clubs, at her new school, I figure maybe something has gotten through. When my teenager is eager to spend her free time helping younger kids put on a show, I can see that something has gotten through.
 
Will their version of caring for their world look just like mine? Of course not. It may well be more personal and even more meaningful. And, while I won't take the credit for those good things they do, seeing them act with that kind of compassion makes me feel as though I haven't completely dropped the ball on this one. 

Sometimes it's just about planting the seed, then watching how it grows.