To see a man's reaction

I've played tricks on people just to see how they'll react. Never have I set out to harm or hurt one's feelings; but to catch someone off guard can at times bring such an amusing look to the face of an unassuming victim. I recently heard an address by President Gordon B. Hinckley where he spoke of a different kind of reaction to another's actions.

He told of two boys out playing in a farmers field. They came across the old farmers tattered shoes that he had removed for a moment. One of the boys proposed that they should hide the old man's shoes and stick around to see his confused reaction. The other boy, in considering the conditions endured by this old farmer, felt that it would be more appropriate to stick around and see the farmer's reaction to finding a silver dollar inside each of his shoes. This was their decision. They placed the coins in the shoes and waited for the farmer to return. They soon saw the farmer return to his shoes and in amazement pull out one of the silver dollars. He put on his shoe, and once again surprised pulled a second silver dollar out of his second shoe. The look on the old man's face and his actions tell the rest of the story. He immediately knelt in prayer and spoke aloud to his Father in Heaven in thanksgiving. He spoke of the hardships that he and his wife were enduring, and recognized the miracle of what had just occurred.

We definitely have choices throughout our lives on how to treat others. May we ever consider choices that will cause others to rejoice rather than distress.