Virtue

Wagner, Mark Mr. Gravener EWRT 1A Febuary 8, 2007 In the english language, as well as many others, there are quite a few words that are considered to be ineffable. Among these are love, morality, and virtue. Unlike love, and morality however, virtue is a concept that everybody has a different definition of. This can be influenced by a persons relationship with their family and friends, and experiences that somebody may have encountered while they were growing up. In the epic poem Psychomachia, written by Aurelius Clemens Prudentius, seven holy virtues are presented, which directly oppose the seven deadly sins. The virtues listed are chastity, abstinence, liberality, diligence, kindness, patience, and humility. These seven virtues are in conflict against the seven deadly sins: lust, gluttony, greed, sloth, wrath, envy, and pride respectivley. Personally I feel that my idea of virtue is very much aligned with these values. Although many of the people that I have chosen to include in my life possess one or two of these attributes, the one person that I know that embodies nearly all of these characteristics is my grandfather, Paul Doherty. When I was growing up, I would frequently visit my grandfather during school breaks. My grandfather is a very well educated man, and during my trips there he would help me with any subjects that I had trouble with, whether they be math, literature, history, or anything else. Even though it would often take many hours for me to understand the concept that he was trying to teach me, he would always be extremley patient for me. His patience with me has continued long after I was asking him for help

with my homework. Even if I had been in the shower for one and a half hours and had used all the hot water long ago, he would still be patient and wait for me to get out under my own will. At the time I didn’t fully appreciate that he had sacrificed his own hot shower so that I could indulge in my relaxation, but now I realise all the times that he had to wait for me and didn’t say anything or try to rush me. Since my childhood though, my grandfather has become weaker, and needs an oxygen bottle wherever he goes. He’s also not able to walk very quickly, and is virtually unable to get up stairs at all, even just two or three steps. To accomadate him, we have to wait for the elavator, even in places with lengthy lines. Now I feel like it is my turn to repay him for all the things he has put up with. Even though I am normally an impatient person, when I am with him I let him take as much time as he needs. Even when I’m not with him though, I still try to be as patient for people as I can. Without him, I’d probably still be the same impatient four-year-old that I was then. My grandfather is also an extremley kind and charitable person. Whenever I’m with him and we walk post a homeless person on the street, he always gives the person some food. For nearly ten years, he would read the Sunday newspaper every week to blind people on a local AM radio station. Even though this took up a very large amount of his time, he was still extremley enthusiastic about doing it and rarely missed a day. He also occasionally did other charity work whenever he was free and the oppurtunity arose. My grandfather has a very distinct voice, and whenever he would be at some public event, people would often walk up to him and mention how a relative of theirs always listens to him, and how grateful they are that he reads the newspaper to them. One time I was at a movie theater, getting some candy, when the woman behind us approached him

and thanked him. I was surprised by how my grand father acted; instead of saying “Your welcome” or “It’s no problem” or a statement of that nature, he quickly moved on and avoided it as though he hadn’t done anything special. Not gloating or bragging about what you do is not the only characteristic that makes somebody humble, another aspect of it is not judging others for their faults. The second that you view somebody as being less than you, then you automatically view yourself as being better and pride yourself with that fact. Even if he meets someone is racist, homophobic, or some type of criminal, my grandfather still does not think of them as any less of a human than him and treats them with respect and kindness. While his patience, charitability, and humility are three of his greatest qualities, my grandfather also abstains from nearly everything that could harm him in any way. He almost never eats anything that is unhealthy, doesn’t smoke, and almost never drinks. In a country that’s getting fatter and fatter, its good to see someone that actually cares about their body and does not waste it. There are many examples of my grandfather’s acts of generosity but to write them would require many volumes. Despite a difference of thousands of years, the idealogy of Roman poet Aurelius Clemens Prudentius on what makes somebody virtuous still holds true to this day.