Charles Knowlton (1927-2013)

How often do people feel tempted to compromise in order to live in peace? Sometimes, when disagreements arise, everyone involved agrees to give a little in order to reach the ultimate goal—or sometimes just to break even. Regrettably, when we compromise moral principles to this end, the result is often frustration and failure in the long term. Do we see this happening in our lives today? Are there principles worth preserving as though they were carved into a solid stone slab?

From our youth onward, we develop values that guide us through life’s challenges. Our values—whether we live up to them or not—shape our actions, and those actions shape our character. But are we basing our values on truth, or on convenient fictions?

Reader's Digest a few years ago had a story about a woman who had been born blind but had her sight restored through a medical procedure. She had not let her blindness hold her back—she was married and had done her best to live a normal life. Then one day, a doctor suggested she try a new form of surgery. She did, and when the bandages were removed she cried, “I can see.” Indeed, she could physically see her husband for the very first time.

There was a time when my brother and I searched for hidden treasure on the farm, and we certainly left holes everywhere we went. As kids, we spent hours in the hot sun digging. It was not hard work because we shared a common—if childish—dream, and it was real to us at the time. Too many of us have lost the excitement of having a dream.

For many school-age children, there comes a time of accountability. Teachers and parents (not to mention children) know it well: the moment when, standing tall before their children, Mom or Dad asks, “Have you done your homework?” This is a big question and one that has far-reaching implications outside the classroom and into the adult world.