Incidents Around the House

by Josh Malerman

The older I get, the more I think the barometer for intelligence is how kind you are. Because it’s not an easy thing to do, staying mindful, after all you go through in life.

That’s real cruelty. That’s world cruelty. Where it’s not just the idea that one person is cruel, it’s that they believe, and have reason to believe, the whole world feels the same.

try to stay kind as long as you can. For all of your life. Always be mindful of what others are enduring. And whatever you do, most of all, don’t allow someone else’s meanness, someone else’s cruelty, to get inside of you.

A location can be a beacon to someone else, even if they’re only dots on a map to you.

Because no matter what’s going on in your head, your heart, your life, it’s always wise to remember to eat.

Sometimes when you complain, it’s not because you want to be told how to fix it. You just wanna say it sucks. Because sometimes it just sucks.

My whole life, people said don’t bring up politics and religion and, well, look at things now. Subjects can become sick just like people can. They need care. They need medicine. They need talk.

With aging, with living, with enduring this life. It’s all about heart. How long can you maintain an open heart and an open mind in this world, how long can you sustain being kind to other people, no matter what they say or do.