Just about every action has a ripple effect. One of the most widely discussed topics in the sports realm this week has been sports doctor Larry Nassar’s sentencing for decades of molesting young, female athletes.

Many of the victims were gymnasts. Some of them — like gold medalists Aly Raisman, Jordyn Wieber and McKayla Maroney — went on to accomplish great things in the sport. However, the statements given by these victims in court this week largely shared something in common.

Each has struggled to cope with and overcome the abuse. Many of them are still plagued with anxiety and an inability to trust. Nassar’s actions of course have scarred these women — they were only young girls then — for the rest of their lives. However, it has affected the lives of those they love and will love in the future.

It’s a sickening reminder of how one’s actions can have unimaginable consequences. These ripple effects can touch the lives of so many others for a long period of time.

The world today would be a much happier place to live if each person took just a moment to step back and consider the larger impact he can have on another’s life. Nassar’s case is an extreme one in that he had to have known what he was doing over the course of the last two decades was criminal.

That said, many who commit much smaller transgressions against others oftentimes don’t consider the wrongness of their actions.

Let this serve as a lesson. The golden rule teaches to treat others as one wishes to be treated. Remember this before getting angry with someone for, let’s say, swooping into a parking spot you had your eye on.

Also let it be a guide for brightening the community here in Beaufort County. Let the thought of touching the lives of many here be the motivation to volunteer once in a while. Even small kindnesses can go a long way in improving someone’s day.