Virtue, Thy Name Is Teresa

There is no single definition for a life well lived, I suppose. Yet we, as the human core, tend to make value judgments regarding virtues such as creativity, kindness, courage and accomplishment, according to our own individual background and upbringing and then transfer these value judgments to the whole of humanity. That’s where the trouble begins.

For all our high-flown floribunda of beatitudes, we’re slow to abandon our primal instincts when push comes to shove. We are a complex, exotically decorated, intricately fabricated crazy quilt of hypocrisy wrapping virtually all issues effecting our welfare, politics and the comportment of our daily lives.

We tend to emulate (dare I say sanctify?) those most visible in our lives, especially if they engender physical characteristics we personally find in short supply and covet; trim waistlines, perfect hair, lovely singing voices, rock-hard abs, bodacious cleavage and/or all the above. But how do we react when one of our media darlings gets caught hurling racial epithets or one of our princes of the gridiron shoots his chauffeur during a drug-crazed episode? In spite of mountains of evidence to the contrary, O.J. Simpson was found not guilty of murdering two people because twelve people wanted to punish a racist cop.

Often, virtue chooses anonymity, for without it, virtue assumes instability not unlike that of an ion of radioactive material exposed to a catalyst; it loses components of its power when irradiated. To illustrate my point, I offer the life of Mother Teresa of Calcutta, arguably the most virtuous human of the Twentieth Century. She sought nothing except the ability to feed, clothe, house and heal millions of sick and dying children. By shunning the limelight, by refusing the trappings of celebrity, by relying on her faith in her creator, she accomplished more than all the ‘celebrities’ in history.

So if you’re looking for virtue in your life, do it quietly, do it piously, do it in emulation of Mother Teresa of Calcutta; close your mouth, open your wallet and send a few twenties to someone whose efforts you admire or someone who just needs a little help. It’ll do you a lot more good than full sexy lips or a visit to your plastic surgeon.