Wisdom for our youth

— It was a pleasure the other day to read some of the same advice drilled into my own shrunken head by a military father as I grew into adulthood. And the wisdom came from three Fayetteville folks.

Today I hear very little-if any-public (or private) discussion about the need for such personal qualities as character, integrity, honor, loyalty, honesty, courage and tenacity.

What a tremendous loss this silence represents for us-and the society we’ve created-in everything from our politics to the ways we relate to each other. I realized just how bad the decline of advocating for character in America has become when a Time magazine featured both presidential candidates on its cover,with the question: “Who is telling the truth?”

Ye t i t ’ s clear to me that Fayetteville pharmacist Carl Collier, retired educator Treva Hamilton and civil engineer Jim McClelland thankfully haven’t forgotten the inner aspects of life most relevant to each of us. And they freely shared with 565 Fayetteville High School seniors the values of living morally and ethically at their assembly the other night.

These three accomplished citizens were inducted into the Fayetteville Public Education Foundation Hall of Honor for their individual contributions in support of education. Guard your reputation, work hard and have a good heart, follow your curiosity and don’t fear the risks were some tidbits of advice the trio had to offer.

“Reputation is hard-earned. And you only get one,” Collier told the students, emphasizing that they should be especially mindful of comments and photos they post today on social media. Careless Internet postings that may seem so amusing and clever will never go away and could easily come back to haunt them later in life.

Collier also defined success in life, not as measured by one’s financial status, but instead by having “personal satisfaction and happiness.”

I couldn’t agree more. Having a sense of self-worth, respect and purpose are fundamental to happiness. I’d only add that any person is perceived by others by the intangibles such as how they keep their word, their capacity for honesty and the degree of character they display in their actions.

Hamilton brought a taste of Bible study to the students, one that spoke to the need for “goodness” in a person’s heart. Imagine that, my friends, a Biblical anecdote. And in a public school assembly hall! The news account of this special evening said Hamilton told the story of how David was confirmed by God as the King of Israel because he possessed a good heart.

Accordingly, the news story said, she advised each student to look deep inside the outward appearances of others to actually know and understand them on deeper levels. She explained that they are wisest to examine the heart of each person because that is the most significant aspect of who they are.

In other words, folks are born with the faces they get, but their hearts can change and reflect a truly relevant inner beauty that becomes the product of their conditioning and choices.

She told the gathering that she started working at age 9, mopping the floor of a beauty shop in her hometown of Sallisaw, Okla.

“My parents instilled in me if I worked hard, I could do anything I wanted,” she was quoted as saying. Hamilton eventually worked hard enough to earn bachelor’s and master’s degrees. What I also hear Hamilton describing was once widely called a work ethic in America. And having a good work ethic was a quality that was prized and respected by every employer.

I don’t hear that phrase anymore in this country. How about you other baby boomers out there?

I do, however, hear more emphasis increasingly placed on getting some tax-supported entitlement just for breathing.

McClelland acknowledged that, as a young man, he had a natural curiosity that sometimes led to mischief. Yet his sense of wonderment proved crucial to shaping the man he would become.

“Without curiosity, I would have limited myself,” he said. “I’ve learned and experienced many interesting things.”

Accordingly, he advised the students to never be reluctant to step out and take reasonable risks as they mature.

I know that, in my own life, the willingness to assume risks as the years ticked away also has proven to be a good choice in most instances.

I believe this Hall of Honor, founded in 1997, did a fine job in selecting these three to join 54 others who have been recognized over the past 15 years. Honorees are introduced to students during Fayetteville’s annual homecoming festivities and inducted at a banquet.

Believe my eyes?

In light of the police findings that the Bentonville school bus that struck the badly injured 17-year-old girl at an intersection crosswalk had a green light at the time, I now wonder what the two eyewitnesses who insist that the girl actually had the green light to walk must be thinking. “Can I believe my own eyes anymore?” comes to mind.

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Mike Masterson’s column appears regularly in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Email him at [email protected].

Editorial, Pages 19 on 10/20/2012

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