The Power of the Dog

by Thomas Savage

“I would tell you, Peter, never to mind what people say. People can never know the heart of another.” “I’ll never mind what people say.” “And Peter, please don’t say it quite like that. Most who don’t mind—most of them grow hard, get hard. You must be kind, you must be kind. I think the man you will become could hurt people terribly, because you’re strong. Do you understand kindness, Peter?” “I’m not sure whether I do, father.” “Well, then. To be kind is to try to remove obstacles in the way of those who love or need you.”

This conversation between a father and his son hit too close to home... I found that most fathers (including my own) are hardly expresses how they felt toward their children. To see Johnny saying "I love you" to his son Peter makes me teared up a bit.

And oh, didn’t that sissy kid just walk right by them, with that glance of his, and the lips set in a way that made Phil want to smack them!