"But possibly I am something more than I suppose myself to be."
— René Descartes
"I am not patient by nature... I must try to practice all the virtues I would have my little girls possess."
- Marmee in the beloved classic Little Women
We hear so much these days about 'dressing for success' which is indeed a noble concept. After all, Thomas Fuller, aka 'The Fuller brush man', is known for saying that 'good clothes open all doors'. We all want doors to open for us, we all want to meet the opportunities that come our way head on, with open arms and eager hearts. But what if we begin to dress from the inside out, working first and foremost on the inner man/woman who resides within?
Someone who arduously and diligently worked on improving himself on the inside was one of America's founding father's, the irrascible Benjamin Franklin. In his autobiography, Franklin outlines a plan for 'arriving at moral perfection'. He himself called it a 'bold and arduous project'. In his own words,
"I made a little book, in which I allotted a page for each of the virtues. I rul'd each page with red ink, so as to have seven columns, one for each day of the week marking each column with a letter for the day. I cross'd these columns with thirteen red lines, marking the beginning of each line with the first letter of one of the virtues, on which line, and in its proper column, I might mark, by a little black spot, every fault I found upon examination to have been committed respecting that virtue upon that day."
The thirteen virtues that Franklin chose to work on were the following: Temperance; Silence; Order; Resolution; Frugality; Industry; Sincerity;Justice ;Moderation;
Cleanliness; Tranquility; Chastity; and Humility.
Giving a week's strict attention to each of the virtues successively, he completed the cycle of thirteen virtues in thirteen weeks. When completed, he would start over again. Hence, he was able to go through his chart 4 times in a year.
A modern day American who shines from the inside out is the singer Taylor Swift. In a recent interview in Vogue magazine, she is given high praise from the designer Prabal Gurung. Gurung comments, "I love your music. It's really beautiful - but you know that. But... more than anything, it's the way that you have conducted yourself. Really. The way you handle youself is incredible." Swift gushes in response, "That kind of made my day. People don't usually compliment your character."
Like dressing on the outside, dressing on the inside takes work. I once heard a sermon in a little Baptist Church on Bourbon Street on New Orleans. After jamming on the drums, the minister gets up and gives a marvelous sermon on discipline. The close was the question, "How does one get discipline?" The answer, "By being disciplined".
With work, with a plan, with a wing and a prayer - Like Benjamin Franklin of long ago and Taylor Swift of the here and now, we, too, can work on the inner, which in turn will enhance and make more radiant the outer. When the outer and the inner meet, we can achieve a measure of true harmony.
Love and peace-
Lydia
