Saturday, February 5, 2011

Cliche` Lines #2

"Character is who you are when no one is looking!"
This one has always made me think because there are few moments in a day when no one is looking. I currently live in the city, with four other guys. It fun and exciting, but there are not too many times in the day when I am alone. Most of the time I have someone with me when I'm cooking, cleaning, walking to class or doing whatever; and if I am alone, I call someone to see if they want to spend time with me. So when is no one looking? When i'm in the bathroom...when i'm sleeping in my room (hopefully)...when I'm the first to get back home and the others aren't back yet? What I do during those moments is my character? Not at all. I believe that character is defined when people are around, looking, staring with their full attention on you. Character is the decisions you make when people are relying on you, watching to see what you do. I watched the movie "The Town" and there was a scene where the robbers are loading their money into a car and a cop happened to be right across the street looking at them. There was an awkward 10 seconds where they just look at each other, before the cop slowly turns his head the other way and the thieves pack their car and leave. If that movie was real, that cop's character was defined once he made the decision to turn his head away and not call for any help or do anything to stop the men. The thieves had their eyes on him waiting to see what he would do. That was his moment, to do what he was trained to do. But he failed. In my life my character is defined by actions and words. If I say that I am going to do something for someone, or be there for someone, I need to be there otherwise my character is going to say that I am someone that cannot be relied on. Character is made when people are watching and a person makes a decision to do something. Whether its radical by coming to defense of someone, or passive by simply walking away. Character is made in almost every decision, when people are around, watching, waiting for you to choose.

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