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From "Courage," by Charles Wagner (1894):
Steadfastness is the indispensable quality of every man who one day does not wish to be obliged to say: “I have wasted my life.”
A man should not incessantly change with every impression of the moment, but should remain steadfast when he has once determined upon what is right. Of what use are the flowers if they do not produce fruits, and of good ideas if they are not transmuted into deeds? We must encourage stability, habituate ourselves to remain constant, and when we are sure that we are right, must fortify ourselves against invasion. Do not let criticisms or attacks disturb you.
Nothing is so difficult as to remain faithful. At each step of the way outside influences are brought to bear upon us to make us deviate or retrograde. And if there were only difficulties from without, it would not matter so much; but there are those from within. Our dispositions vacillate. We promise one thing with the best intentions in the world; but when the time comes to keep it, everything is changed–the circumstances, men, ourselves; and what duty demands of us seems so different from what we had foreseen, that we hesitate. Those who will fulfill on a rainy day a promise which they have made on a sunny one, are few and far between.
And so we go on casting our hearts to the four winds, giving it and taking it back again, breaking with our past, separating ourselves from ourselves, so to speak. And when we look behind, we no longer recognize ourselves. We see ourselves in the days that are past as a stranger, or rather as several strangers.
There is nothing like a steadfast man, one in whom you can have confidence, one who is found at his post, who arrives punctually, and who can be trusted when you rely on him. He is worth his weight in gold. You can take your bearings from him, because he is sure to be where he ought to be, and nowhere else. The majority of individuals, on the contrary, are sure to be anywhere but where they ought to be. You have only to take them into your calculations to be deceived. Some of them are changeable from weakness of character; they cannot resist attacks, insinuations, and, above all, cannot remain faithful to a lost cause. A defeat in their eyes is a demonstration of the fact that their adversary was right and that they were wrong. When they see their side fail, instead of closing up the ranks, they go over to the enemy. These are the men who are always found on the winning side, and not in their hearts would be found the courageous device: Victrix causa diis placuit, sed victa Catoni ["The victorious cause pleased the gods but the defeated cause pleased Cato"].
A profound duplicity, a discrepancy between words and deeds, between appearance and reality, a sort of moral dilettantism which makes us according to the hour sincere or hypocritical, brave or cowardly, honest or unscrupulous–this is the disease which consumes us. What moral force can germinate and grow under these conditions? We must again become men who have only one principle, one word, one work, one love; in a word, men with a sense of duty. This is the source of power. And without this there is only the phantom of a man, the unstable sand, and hollow reed which bends beneath every breath. Be faithful; this is the changeless northern star which will guide you through the vicissitudes of life, through doubts and discouragements, and even mistakes.
Hi Validus,
I found that to be both an interesting and inspiring read; but not something I can honestly say, "100%" am in agreement with...
Flexibility is just as important a quality in life to have as being faithful -- but sometimes "the learning curve" of life puts us in positions of having to choose between the two.
As a young man, I was very idealistic in many ways. I had a very high standard of Ethics, was very serious about practicing my religion that I grew up with, and hoped someday to marry a woman and eventually have kids and raise a family, etc.... I DID marry a woman in 1981; but gradually was coming face-toface with my true sexuality -- which posed a great inner conflict between the things I was taught as a youth and the reality I was experiencing as an adult.
Life is full of learning curves. Being faithful to an old ideology that turns out to be not only a bit impractical, but also sometimes downright unrealistic, is not wise, but also using good old fashioned common sense.
Adjusting one's views / thoughts, usually of course eventually results in changing one's actions. If I was totally unwilling to ever change my thinking, then I never would have grown (including never succeeded in growing out my own hair). I wouldn't be here at MLHH today if I had remained completely "faithful" to everything I sincerely believed in when I was still in my 20s.... Sometimes the bigger courage is the willingness to become UNfaithful to an old Cause.
However, if remaining true to yourself, to believe and practice honesty, integrity, fairness towards all, etc., and the constant willingness to continue to grow & improve as a human being -- being faithful to THAT, yes, I can be 100% in agreement with!
- Ken
In the 4th paragraph down, I made a small boo-boo: I MEANT to say....
Re. being faithful to an old ideology is often NOT practical or showing common sense, once someone has learned that it is no longer truly workable for them.
Clear as mud? (LOL)
.... Off to work now!
- Ken
I totally agree with you, Ken. There is a danger that blindly remaining faithful for its own sake can simply lead to stubborn inflexibility. Sometimes we need to change our perspective and bend a little - or even have the courage to change completely if that is for the best.
Life is a teacher and only fools will refuse to learn from it.
Damon
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