The Questions of the Soul

Laws of Life essay from soph. year

 

What is good character?

 

It is moments like these where I find myself alone in silence, scanning my mind for answers to questions that subconsciously gnaw at my brain for hours on end.  These questions which tear at my head for an answer—any answer at all—but fail to produce a proper one.  It is times like these when I come to realize that there are questions that do not have easy answers.  These are the questions that must be recalled not from the brain, but from the heart.  So I search myself deep within the recesses of my being.  There, buried deep within the pits of my soul, are the questions as well as the answers.  Here in my quiet haven, I have found the answers to those seemingly unanswerable questions.

 

What am I without my integrity?

 

The answer is simple.  I am nothing without my integrity.  Integrity is a part of me; it is what helps to define the foundations of my being.  Without integrity, my everyday decisions would be completely unethical.  In a society based on morals and righteousness, I would be out of place and in a state of chaos.  I would not retain the ethical behaviors required to do good.  There would be no place in my life for helping those in need, for turning in money that doesn’t belong to me, for being honest, and most importantly for doing what is right when I know the difference between right and wrong.  That is why it is so essential of me to exercise my integrity unremittingly.

 

Why do I practice responsibility?

 

Again, the simplicity of this answer amazes me, as with integrity.  The truth is I practice responsibility because of my integrity.  Responsibility is a quality that revolves around integrity.  Integrity is the stump of a tree and responsibility is just one of the many branches. The decisions I make are mine and mine alone, that is what defines responsibility.  But now I ask myself why.  Why is responsibility important to the structure of my foundation as a person?  Because to be responsible is to show integrity.  Without responsibility I would be unreliable and mistrusted.  I wouldn’t be able to perform the things that demand my time.  To do my homework, to watch my sibling on a Friday night, to clean the dishes, all these things I could not do.  It is my responsibility that drives me to take accountability for my actions.  It is that same responsibility that maintains our society today.

 

How does self-discipline affect me?

 

Self-discipline is quite simply the railings on the winding path that is my life.  It is the support and the guidance of my actions.  The problem that most people are presented with is whether or not they are disciplined enough to keep their actions in check.  If the railings of the path are not present, the wanderer of the path is likely to stray from that path.  If self-discipline were not present in my life, I would be without guidance, a man without a path.  Self-discipline has given me the railings that I need in order to maintain good character, and that is why it is so important in my life.

 

What is good character?

 

Here now I find myself back to the original question.  This is the one I’ve been waiting for, the one that so persistently sought to be answered.  The answer this time is found in the deepest parts of my soul and my heart and is by far the simplest answer of them all.  Good character is integrity, responsibility, and self-discipline.  I was always told as a child to listen to my heart, for it knows me better than I know myself.  It is there that I found the answers to my questions, there that I have found my own character.  It is there, inside of my heart and my soul, where I have found myself.