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A Moral Person

My friend Tom sent me this the other day:

A nation, as a society, forms a moral person, and every member of it is personally responsible for his society. –Thomas Jefferson

I’ve been thinking a lot about this lately. That’s why I posted Kipling’s If and Dromgoole’s The Bridge Builder.

One of the things that got me thinking about it was Clinton’s contribution to the controversy surrounding The Path to 911 when he said “I think they ought to tell the truth.” Doesn’t he realize that telling the truth starts at the top by setting an example that trickles down to society as a whole? It sets a standard. If it’s ok for the President of the United States to lie, then it must be ok for me, you, big business, little business, politicians, teachers and everyone else to lie. Of course, a reasonable person doesn’t believe this really but obviously our former President does. … Except when it affects him.

I think there are many aspects to the “moral person” Thomas Jefferson speaks about.

Nashville is a good example. Unlike Detroit, even in good times, most everyone here is polite, respectful, and basically happy. This describes Nashville, as a society.

I can be 20 feet from my office building and a person (man or woman) entering the building before me will wait and hold the door open for me. It sets an example. Now, I find myself doing this.

The receptionist at the firm I work for calls me “Mam.” She does this because I’m obviously older than she and her parents taught her to respect her elders. One might think this is a small gesture, but it’s not. It is very genuine. And because of the way she was raised, she just can’t bring herself to do otherwise. It sets an example. Nathan is 21 years old. His friends call Nathan’s father Mr. Grimes. A Nashville reader of this post might think it odd that I cite this example but from where I come from this obvious respect rarely happens.

Today, I’m winding up a week of filling in for a legal assistant who is on vacation. This morning, the attorney I’m working for said to me, “Cheryl, I want to tell you before I forget, that I really appreciated your help this week.” Wow! That made me feel great! I cannot remember the last time an employer in Detroit said he appreciated me even though I worked 50-55 hour weeks without overtime pay. It sets an example. This has been my experience as a whole at this firm. You can bet, by this attorney’s example, that I will be more mindful of telling people I apprecate them.

It trickels down.