Not every bark is wisdom

“Most dogs bark for no reason, even if someone is passing by at a distance; but some, perhaps not the best guard dogs, but rational creatures, calmly approach a stranger, sniff them, and only bark if the scent is suspicious.”

This sentence is by José Saramago and talks about how not everyone reacts on impulse — some observe, think, and only act if it is really necessary.

This sentence by Portuguese writer José Saramago uses dogs as a metaphor to talk about human behavior. He compares two types of dogs: those that bark without thinking, just because someone passed by, and those that think before acting, sniff first, and only bark if they sense something unusual.Translating this to our daily life, it is like saying:

• There are people who judge others without knowing them, just because they saw from afar or heard about them.

• And there are people who prefer to observe, get to know better, understand what is happening, before drawing conclusions or reacting.

Saramago is saying that acting with calm and reason is better than reacting impulsively. And this is very relevant to the lives of teenagers, who are constantly dealing with opinions, judgments, and decisions. Sometimes, it’s easy to go along with criticizing someone just because others are doing it. But the best approach is to be like the 'rational dog': get close, get to know, think... and only then decide if it’s worth 'barking' or not.

Bro, that thing about dogs that bark for no reason is like those people who talk bad about others without even knowing them. They see from afar, already judging, already talking nonsense. Totally clueless.

Now, the 'rational dogs' are like the people who come calmly, have a conversation, feel out the vibe, and only then draw a conclusion. Much smarter, right?And let me tell you: this business of going around 'barking' without knowing is really stupid. Like, what's the point? You just make a fool of yourself, just show that you don't think. It's like when someone spreads gossip without even knowing if it's true. Totally clueless, whatever, whatever...

So that's it: better to be the smart dog who sniffs first than the one that goes barking like crazy. In the end, those who think before they act are the ones who stand out.