‘To thine own self’
One must wonder sometimes whether the recipient of wisdom
actually catches the significance. We can only hope that members of the UHS
Class of 2010 do just that.
The thematic message that underscored the Unionville High
School graduation speeches at the Carpenter Center last week was one of an
individual knowing and bettering himself.
Sharon Parker, superintendent of schools for the
Unionville-Chadds Ford School District told the graduates, “Determine how you
want to be known.”
Those words came after Unionville Principal Paula Massanari
told the class “I challenge you to take part of this summer to thoughtfully
consider what part of yourself you really like and want to develop further and
what part of your behavior you would rather leave behind.”
Even in humor Class President Tyler Keesling pointed his
classmates in the same direction. “Life is like Mardi Gras. Pick the character
you want to be,” he said.
That direction was most eloquently referred to in the line spoken
by Polonius to Laertes when he said, “To thine own self be true,” in
Shakespeare’s Hamlet.
While that line is quoted by many, even those who never read
the play, fewer people recall the rest of the line: “And it
must follow, as the night the day, Thou can not then be false to any man.”
Literature has offered many universal truths, but this one
goes beyond telling people to be honest. It’s more than the line about George
Washington saying he could not tell a lie or any of the “Honest Abe” stories
Americans were brought up on.
“To thine own self be true” goes to the soul of individual
identity, actual self-esteem and true honesty and integrity.
But knowing oneself and being true to that are little more
than academic exercises for most high school and even recent college graduates.
They’re even little more than that for many, if not most, adults.
Knowing, honoring and being true to one’s self is a lifelong
battle with challenges coming when least expected. Those challenges are far
broader and deeper than just paying bills on time and giving an honest day’s
labor.
People will face manipulation and a variety of bullying
tactics, some subtle, some overt, in the workplace, on the street and in the
political process. The only way to stand up is to know yourself, establish your
priorities and stay true to them.
It’s all too easy to give up the self to another, to allow
others to define us, to lose ourselves in exchange for some perceived reward.
That, however, is a poor trade. It’s giving up the ability to tell truth from
lie.
There may be changes of heart and mind, but those changes
should only come after an honest assessment of the facts, external and
internal, not as victim to another’s will.
Self-discovery is an awesome ride, an incredible adventure.
It’s a matter of learning the lessons of life. But people can only learn those
lessons if they are honest about themselves first. And to be honest with
themselves, people must first know themselves.
The Class of 2010 was shown the way. Its members must now
learn the terrain.
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