Of Humility

Jeg poster et nytt innlegg fra L nå. Vet ikke hvor relevant det er for alle, men for de av dere - og jeg vet det er noen - som faktisk har tatt steget og begynt å skrive med noen kan det kanskje være av interesse. Men jeg vil først poengtere det at ved å skrive til en innsatt; du trenger ikke å gå så "hardt" inn i det som de tingene L snakker om her. Du må ikke ta en så aktivt del av livet deres - egentlig er det bare nok at du faktisk skriver med/til dem innimellom. Gir dem noen ord fra utsiden. Men kanskje er det noen av dere som gjerne vil utrette den forskjellen i livet deres, virkelig hjelpe dem til å finne seg selv og bli trygge på seg selv.

Of Humility

You have discussed the idea of mission with your inmate, and hopefully you have helped him determine that mission in the context of his life and each distinct faction of that life. Now it is time to begin to develop the character needed to complete the mission by the attainment of virtue. Virtue gives worthy missions life; the first virtue is Humility.

Humility is defined, for your purpose, as Modesty. It means that someone who has the virtue of humility sees himself as he truly is and does not consider himself superior to anyone no matter what his abilities or accomplishments. A feeling of superiority over another person is of pride and is the antithesis of humility.

Humility is difficult to embrace in most westernized societies. In our cultures, we strive to become superior to each other through our success. We mistake those accomplishments as a testament that we are better than others. We treasure aggressiveness, victory, and status, and we see humility as a weakness. The fact is though, that someone who has a superior attitude will always fall to the someone who has the virtue of humility.

Having the virtue of humility means that you can say, “I was wrong; I'm sorry; please forgive me,” with sincerity. It means that you can ask for and receive constructive criticism; it allows you to take responsibility for your own failures. A person who has humility can learn from his mistakes and grow.

Humility is necessary virtue for any worthy mission, but how do you approach humility with someone who feels that it is a weakness, like most inmates do? Like anything else in a person's life, the desire to change has to be there. You can see where your inmate is by asking him questions about his ability to admit guilt, to accept criticism; does he have any prejudices? Get a feel for where he is at and whether he is ready to take this step, some people aren't. If he seems receptive explain to him about the virtue of humility and what it means. If he is willing, ask him to begin some exercises that will help him keep the goal of obtaining humility. During a month ask him to keep track of how many times he feels that he is better than someone else, for any reason. Then he should write down why he felt that way. Also keep track of how many times he apologized or admitted that he was wrong, and how many times he asked for or was able to accept criticism. He should keep track of all of this in writing and send it to you so that you both can discuss it. The idea is for him to be cognizant of what it means to be humble.

It is difficult to be humble in prison. Many consider it a weakness. Most inmates walk around with a mask of animosity and pride. They feel that admitting to being wrong or imperfect is a loss of face. For some this is impossible to overcome without a radical change in their lives. The thing is, humility is not weakness or thinking less of oneself or one's abilities, gifts or talents. Humility is seeing oneself without illusion, faults and all. Humility is believing that each person has as much worth as you do, as much right to life and to complete their mission. If your inmate is really searching for a better way, then a humble heart is an important virtue in the building of his character.

Peace