It's funny, sometimes, how you come across a really good book.
With all this current free time I have in the evenings, I've become a regular at the Pass Christian library - not in the evenings, because it closes at 5:30; but sometimes I stop by on the way in to work (it opens at 8), or get by with a few minutes left before closing. Neither of those options gives me much time to really look around, so the first few times I went I'd go straight to authors I knew I wanted to read.
But then I began to branch out and just grab stuff at random, based on titles, because what the heck? If I don't like the book, I don't have to read it. I'm not buying it. And nobody will care if I don't read it and simply return it unread.
So while wandering through the history section (because I love history), I stumbled across a book called "George Washington and Benedict Arnold: A Tale of Two Patriots."
Catchy title, right? Because we all know of Washington as the greatest of patriots. But Arnold, whose name is synonymous with being a traitor?
Yet Arnold had been a great general in the Revolutionary War before changing sides. And this book is written by a former superintendent of West Point, which is interesting because West Point also happened to be the point of Arnold's treachery. He was going to arrange the capture of West Point, of which he was commander, by the British, in exchange for money.
As many great battles as Arnold won leading American forces against the British - and he was arguably a far more successful general and American hero early in the war than Washington - Arnold also felt betrayed by the Continental Congress, by rivals within the Army, and cheated by the amount of his personal fortune he spent on the cause that Congress delayed and then refused to reimburse.
Still, at one point there was talk of Arnold replacing Washington as Commander in Chief of the Continental Army - that's how highly he was thought of and how frustrated Congress got at times with Washington.
But you can read the book.
It's an interesting study in character.
The ancient Greeks defined character as the sum of four virtues: Fortitude (strength of mind and the courage to persevere in the face of adversity); Temperance (self-discipline to control emotions and appetites); Prudence (making the right choices); and Justice (fairness, honesty, keeping your word).
Major General Joshua Chamberlain, a hero of the War of Northern Aggression (even though he was a Union officer), told a group of war veterans his definition of character: "I do not mean bravery. Many a man has that. What I mean by character is a firm and seasoned substance of the soul. I mean such qualities as intelligence, thoughtfulness, conscientiousness, right-mindedness, patience, fortitude, long-suffering and unconquerable resolve."
I like the phrase "A firm and seasoned substance of the soul."
And Ronald Reagan said that character takes command in moments of crucial choices. I really like that, because "crucial choices'' are often not just what we consider "big" moments of decision, but very often "small" decisions that we make, decisions that no one will ever know about or that seem to affect no one else. You know, the old "what you do when nobody is looking'' idea.
One historian described Washington's character as "an absolute unwillingness to be led astray by personal gain or ideological distractions."
I like the use of the word "absolute'' there. Absolute unwillingness to be led astray ... that's powerful, because it enforces the idea that character is a choice.
The book ends with the words of Len Marella in a book on ethical leadership, "In Search of Ethics:"
Your thoughts become your words.
Your words become you actions.
Your actions become your habits.
Your habits become your character.
Your character becomes your destiny.
I know that reads like wall-poster philosophy. But I think it says it all.
As we enter this coming election year, I find myself comparing all these candidates to Washington and Arnold --
And find way too many leaning toward the attributes of the latter than the former.
Much to this country's chagrin.
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