February 19
Today, I would like to finish up quotes from John C. Maxwell’s excellent book, Developing the Leader Within You, by quoting an entire poem that Maxwell quotes in his chapter on integrity:
“Am I True to Myself?” – by Edgar Guest
I have to live with myself, and so
I want to be fit for myself to know,
I want to be able as days go by,
Always to look myself straight in the eye;
I don’t want to stand, with the setting sun,
And hate myself for the things I’ve done.
I don’t want to keep on a closet shelf
A lot of secrets about myself,
And fool myself, as I come and go,
Into thinking that nobody else will know
The kind of man I really am;
I don’t want to dress myself up in sham.
I want to go out with my head erect,
I want to deserve all men’s respect;
But here in the struggle for fame and pelf
I want to be able to like myself.
I don’t want to look at myself and know
That I’m bluster and bluff and empty show.
I can never hide myself from me;
I see what others may never see;
I know what others may never know,
I can never fool myself, and so,
Whatever happens, I want to be
Self-respecting and conscious free.
What can we say about our own integrity? Do these words echo our heart-felt desires? Do we know how to pursue integrity, how to develop it in ourselves? Have we ever taken an inventory of our integrity? Have we ever asked others what they think about our walk compared to our talk? We will explore a few thoughts along these lines tomorrow.