Musings

Living Integrity

There are people - and art and books and movies - which inspire us to be more than we are at this moment in our lives. They are an example for us of true integrity.

I have known such people and am always awed by the ease with which they seem to know the right thing to do or say. These people lift me up and make me want to aspire to their level of rightness.

To do the right thing, regardless of the personal consequences, is difficult. It involves not only honesty but sometimes the strength to face consequences. At other times it simply involves not speaking about someone or a situation which would have benefited you.

These times – often defining moments in our lives – might easily pass before we have grasped their importance or taken the time to reflect.

Maybe it wouldn’t be so difficult to automatically react in the most honorable manner if we were taught from a young age to follow a higher path - if we had learned to build on small choices of integrity - like returning the excess change that the convenience store clerk gave us or committing to saying “I’m sorry” when we know we were wrong.

I see parents in the grocery store giving fruit or pastries to their children to eat while shopping – do they tell the cashier so they will be charged for these items, or do they feel they have taken something that was “due” them? Do they consider the example they are showing their children, the foundation upon which their lives will be built?

For a large part of our daily lives, there is an option for right or wrong in our experiences that we can easily discern. But often the honorable choice requires the ability to search deep within ourselves for the best answer. Maybe our accumulation of small acts of character build to create a person of more grace and nobility - one who will more easily choose the best path.

Regina Calton Burchett
March 25, 2004 rev. July 29, 2007

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