Wednesday, July 14, 2010

If Virtues Were Commodities...

Suppose you could buy a virtue. Some are more rare to find than others, and therefore more valuable. Some you might find in abundance but very impure and in need of refining to gain value. Some would be so elusive that a black market might develop to fool the unwary buyer into purchasing a beautiful but nonetheless fraud.

Three virtues sprang immediately to the top of my list as the rarest, most treasured, and hence most costly: humility, patience and courage.

Humility is for true virtue connoisseurs. They can recognize the real package--not flashy but very weighty. True assessment is heavy with honesty.

Patience also does not gleam to dazzle the eye. Its dull sheen can fool the inexperienced buyer into thinking it not worth the price, but it multiplies with use, so growth is the real value.

Courage does flash and gleam. If it had a fault, which virtues can't, it would be seduction. It is the sex symbol of virtues, but needs to be replenished often, since it can get used up so quickly.

Thank goodness virtues are not purchaseable commodities. If they were the vice of greed would abound and corrupt, pollute and distort the treasures sought.

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