A Good Dose of Humility

 Humility: freedom from pride or arrogance

I would like to begin a series of posts that examines some qualities that are important. It seems proper to begin with humility. I often believe that life is a constant tug of war between humility and overconfidence.  When I was younger I do not believe I had an acceptable balance between the two concepts. I was loud, brash, and often arrogant. I was not especially kind to my siblings, nor others around me. As I have grown and matured I have been treated to some humiliating lessons that were not always welcome, but in retrospect needed. 

I often wonder if there was an event or series of events that made pride or arrogance attractive when I was young. I suspect that confidence was attractive to those adults around me. But as I reflect on those days it seems that my paternal grandmother was possibly one of the most humble role models in my life. She always seemed to be on the look out on how to be of service to others. Whether it was preparing a meal, raising a garden to share, or just being kind to others. It wasn't that the other adults weren't kind, it was that she rose above the standard.  Perhaps it was a series of events in her life. Perhaps it was someone who modeled that behavior for her and that she found it attractive.  Perhaps humility was rooted in her religious focus.  She demonstrated kindness to all that I ever witnessed. 

Humility is a quality I strive to demonstrate in my classroom on a daily basis. I often fear that some perceive it to be a false humility because I do take great pride in my responsibilities. But never once do I believe that any accomplishment is achieved solely. Others were either directly or indirectly involved to placing you at the opportunity and most definitely helping you acquire the skills to successfully meet the demands of the situation that led to accomplish. 

Perhaps a sense of gratitude is necessary to fully achieve humility. To realize that others helped you on your road through both positive and negative experiences is required to be truly humble. To believe that you accomplish solely on your own might suggest lack of perspective which would lead you to the arrogance that you arrived at the accomplishment without the foundation of experiences necessary to be successful. Understand that you are the result of what and who have come before you and helped make opportunity possible. 

Perhaps gratitude will be the next quality that I will examine.  In the meantime....  enjoy July as best you can.  August is right around the next bend  in the road.