Knowledge (Failure)
Service
Modesty
Before I go further, I'll warn you - I really like quotes.
"Freely we serve, because freely we love." Like love, service is voluntary, not forced. Here, English poet Milton highlights my personal perspective of service; Service is doing and acting with the good of others always in mind. This also speaks to humility. I recognize and am extremely thankful for all the opportunities I have been blessed with in my life, and know that it is my right to serve others and not just say I'm going to give back, but actually do it. I accept and realize that I need to refocus myself on this value in particular, for I have learned that it is a struggle of many college students to serve those in need and the community with the daily grind of school, extracurriculars, and such. And I've also realized that I can no longer use this as an excuse.
"Modesty is the best policy." I absolutely hate cliches, especially ones that my mom used repeatedly when I was younger, but this one I find so true and so integral to my life that I have to give her props. I guess hearing something a thousand times over really does teach you something. Anyways, the reason why I value modesty is simple; No matter who I read about, hear about, or learn from who experienced great success in their lives, the honorable ones are those who demonstrated modesty with achievement. I was a kid of many idols, and each of them was modest. I always try to be modest and humble in everything I do, and in addition, I try to teach others to do the same.
To wrap things up before I put you to sleep, I'll just mention that while Knowledge, Service, and Modesty are three of my most important values, they are nowhere near the only ones, and they are nowhere near perfect. By perfect, I mean I am nowhere near being the perfect scholar, philanthropist, or most modest person. But I'm trying.
I like your comments about service. I think many college students, and FIJI is no exception, see service as a chore. Not only are they/we missing the fact that many of our organizations highlight service as a foundational value, but we're missing the fact that doing service together doesn't just help the people/community we're serving, it helps our brotherhood.
ReplyDeleteEvery time I've been involved in a service event with my brothers and the OSU community in general, I've come away from the event knowing more about my brothers and other people than I knew before. The value of these events far surpasses the value of a social event like a TG where we don't do a good job of building relationships.
I feel the same about modesty as you do Alex. I think that many people participate in events just so that they can get recognition for it. Thats probably the worst part about community service events when people do them and they aren't happy unless they are recognized for their work. Modesty should be something we all strive for. Sometimes it is hard to sit back and get absolutely no recognition for the good things you do in life. However, you should know that you did the right thing and that it helped people in the process. Simply, that should be enough for anyone to continue their positive work in life.
ReplyDeleteI really like your perspective on knowledge. Even though failure isn't always perceived as positive thing, I believe a lot more can come out of a failure than not struggling at all. Some of the most positive experiences in my life have been a result of a past failure. I also value modesty as a value... since i'm so modest ( yes ha that was a subtle joke). But honestly I think modesty is one of the best character traits one can possess. People shouldn't be doing "good" acts for recognition but for actually helping those who are in need. Good blog my man, good blog.
ReplyDeleteNow for one of my favorite quotes:
ReplyDeleteLearn from the mistakes of others. You can’t live long enough to make them all yourself.
Eleanor Roosevelt
I think you really hit home with you only learn by DOING!
And Alex Q, I really like what you mentioned about modesty. That's so true. You are probably one of the most modest and humble people I know. Alex L, one of my biggest pet peaves is people who sign up to do something (or say apply for say...a class honorary) and then do nothing for it besides put it on your resume. That is simply a waste of talent, and when people are selfish like that they are taking away an opportunity from someone else.
I think you touched on an interesting point Quintero. We all have these values and we all do our best to stick to them. But in the end we are ALL HUMAN. We all make mistakes. I've made a ton of mistakes in my life, many of them i'm sorry to say have contradicted my values I hold today. It's much harder to stay Congruent ( vocab word from the textbook :) ) to the values we have every second of everyday. Especially with all the enormous pressures put on us from society, family, etc.
ReplyDeleteGreat job! Here's a quote for you as we look at Individual Values with the Social Change Model:
ReplyDelete"The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others. " ~Mohandas Gandhi
Love that guy!