Pearls of Wisdom

Growing up in a small town, everyone seems to know everyone else's business. What you tell someone in confidence will most likely turn out to be the town gossip of the next day. When I was younger, I was always worried about what other people thought of me. There are times that you can be treated like a second-class citizen if you don't have a certain last name, or if you don't surround yourself with the people who do. My mom always knew I felt this way, and would remind me of what was most important in life, by reciting the following pearl of wisdom by John wooden, "Be more concerned with your character than your reputation, because your character is what you really are, while your reputation is merely what others think you are."

I learned over the years, and especially when I moved to Michigan State University after high school, that the most important thing to focus on is our character, and not our reputation. My reputation that preceded me in Charlevoix didn't have any bearing on how people perceived me in East Lansing; however, my character stuck with me regardless. People can't fake good character, but when it comes to their reputation, they can do things to make people think they're something that they are not. You can't simulate good character, because eventually people will see that you aren't genuine, and that your words don't match up with your actions.

A reputation you built in one town isn't necessarily going to be the same kind of reputation you build in another place, despite the fact that you're still the same person on the inside. A people's reputations can change from one instance to another based upon what is happening in their life, and what kind of light is being cast upon them at that moment in time. For example, when I saw kids with well-respected names from my small town go off to college, they stopped being treated like royalty and started being treated like everyone else. They were just another name and face in the crowd. As you can imagine, this came as quite a culture shock to them, and they had a very difficult time adjusting to the different way that people were treating them. Anyone can put on a façade and make someone believe that they are an honest, genuine, or caring person, but their actions and how they actually treat people are what is most important in defining their character. I would also describe character as doing the right thing