"How To Behave And Why" By Munro Leaf

This is a complete retelling of the children's book "How To Behave and Why" by the author Munro Leaf:

"This is really a book about how to have the most fun in living, and it doesn't matter whether you are a boy or a girl, a man or a woman - the rules are all the same.

How old we are isn't what counts. The two biggest questions to ask ourselves in life, at any age, are: Are most of the people I know glad that I am here. 

Am I glad that I am here, myself?

Anyone who can honestly answer YES to those two questions most of the time has learned to BEHAVE in this world and to live a happy life.

It doesn't matter whether you are a Chinese grandfather, and Eskimo mother or an American boy or girl going to school -

You still have to get along well with other people and have most of them like you, if you want to be happy.

Ever since the days when men stopped living in caves, the good and decent people of the world have found out that there are certain ways we all have to behave if we want to live together pleasantly. 

The good ways, or the good rules for behaving, have lasted a long time - so they must have something.

 No matter where you are or who you are, there are four main things that you have to do if you want to make good friends and keep them.

You have to be HONEST


You have to be FAIR 


You have to be STRONG


and


You have to be WISE....

HONEST people tell the truth.

Other people know that when they say something is so, they can believe it. Now that is very handy, because if you are honest and promise to do something, others will trust you.

They will share things with you, tell you secrets, lend you money, and help you do many of the things you want to do - because they know that what you promise and what you say is true. They can count on it.

Only a dope will tell a lie. 

Some people think they can be smart and fool others when they tell a lie - but sooner or later the truth usually is found out and then the liar is sorry because he knows he won't be trusted or believed the next time.

Nobody knows what to do with a person who doesn't tell the truth.

 How can you believe a word they say? Even if they do tell the truth part of the time, how can you know which times they mean it and which times they don't?

 No - we can't say that just one little lie doesn't count. It counts every time and people can't really know us and like us unless they can believe what we say.

You have to be FAIR

Friendly people find it easy to be FAIR. Being friendly and being fair both come from believing that other people have just as much right to be alive and happy as we have. 

The man or woman or boy or girl who goes around gloomy, with a sour face and is afraid that everybody else is going to make him or her unhappy has a very hard time making friends. 

There are a lot of nice people everywhere and the sooner we meet each other in a friendly way and get to know each other, the better the world will be for all of us.

Our mothers and fathers and sisters and brothers make wonderful friends, if we treat them fairly and do our share to make home a happy place for everyone there.

Remember that the secret of fairness is sharing. Selfish people who won't share with others find themselves left alone and unhappy no matter what they own that could be fun. 

We know now what it means to be FAIR, and we will learn all through life that the friendly person is a happy person most of the time.

You have to be STRONG.

Real strength comes from having a clean, healthy mind and a clean healthy body.

Think it out for yourself. All the power of sixty gorillas won't do you any good if you use it stupidly, and if you don't stay healthy you might as well be a run down mouse.

 Any brave man or woman can tell you that having a clean healthy mind comes from taking the time to think what is right and then doing it no matter how scared you are or when it would be easier to do wrong or even if somebody else tries to talk you into it.

Regular habits are the answer to the question: How can we grow from a weak baby to a strong and healthy man or woman? Eating the right food when we should, keeping clean, playing and exercising, sitting and standing right and getting the right amount of sleep and rest are HOW TO GROW WELL AND STRONG.  

Grown ups aren't some kind of weird monsters that have fun making us do things we don't want to do. They just know a whole lot more than we do because they have been here longer. Listen to what they tell you and you will be surprised how right they usually are.

If we are HONEST, and FAIR, and STRONG we won't find it hard to be wise.

We get along with people and we make good friends when we have polite manners like:

Shaking hands when we meet

Smiling and saying "good morning" or "good afternoon"

Waiting for other people to finish talking before we start 

Helping very old and very young people as much as we can, and being quiet and gentle when we are with them

'I can't be right no matter who I am' is a good thing for all of us to remember. 

Other people have ideas and thoughts - ways to do things, ways to work, ways to play, ways they think of God and their country and their race. Their way can be just as right as your way. Remember that, and be glad you have a chance to choose the best of all ways.

If you have learned to be 

HONESTFAIRSTRONGWISE

then you have learned HOW TO BEHAVE AND WHY"