I wouldn't rob a bank, but think nothing of telling a lie
Mother tried to teach me honesty as a child but sometimes those lessons were hard to take. One day when I was about five, I was in Rickford’s all-goods store. I saw a pair of pink anklets and I slipped them in my pocket. When I got home I showed them to Mom. She asked me who had given them to me. I told her, “Mrs. Goodheart”. She took me by the hand and said, “We need to thank her for such a nice gift.”
We started to walk toward the Goodheart’s’ house. Before we got there, I gave up and told Mom the truth. We changed direction and she took me to the store to return the stolen item. I wish that was the last time I would ever steal, cheat or lie.
When my brother, Ralph was still living at home, I stole a quarter from him and hid it among the leaves of a cabbage growing in our garden. It took him a long time to get the truth out of me, but I finally had to confess. He told me I didn't make a good thief or a good liar. I did improve those skills as the years went on
Lately I have been thinking about those hard-to-find examples of honesty, integrity and sincerity in my own life and in the world at large.
First, exactly what is integrity?
It calls for a firm adherence to a code or standard of values. It means walking in an excellent way in every endeavor. Those with integrity will go the extra mile. They keep their word. There is no place for compromise in their lives. They can be counted on to finish what they have started. They are the same in public as they are in their own homes. What you see is what you get.
Some people will stretch the truth to get in with people they want to impress. They have great skill at playing games to get influence, yet they know all the easy routes out of responsibility. They are one thing today and if it suits their purpose they are completely different tomorrow. It is easy for them to raise their hand to start something, but they lack the discipline to finish the task. When the going gets tough, they forget their commitment.
A person of integrity will press through the difficult times. They won’t give up. They are stable, not riding on high emotions, giving up when the goose bumps are gone. They don’t leave tasks to the next guy to do. Integrity in the everyday little things is what builds character.
Of course, there is the other side of the coin, we can be foolish and get over committed, taking on too many tasks without first assessing what is entailed in seeing a project through to the end. Then we might think that we have to make up a lie as an excuse to back out.
It would be interesting to make a list of everyday examples where we compromise our integrity. Maybe that will be a task for another day