Tilting at Windmills

I majored in theatre at college and one of my favorite type of theatre is the musical. Some extraordinary songs have come out of musicals. One of my favorite songs is The Impossible Dream from Man of La Mancha. Don Quixote was thought to be quite mad and his niece and everyone else wanted to “cure” him of his madness. Underneath that apparent madness though was a serious question of truth and dignity. While he may have been tilting at windmills thinking they were monsters he did so because a man should act in honorable ways. He was caught up in the belief of chivalry and that you should treat your fellow human being with respect.

 

Another play I am fond of is Twelve Angry Men and it takes place in a hot stuffy courthouse jury room. At the beginning of the play all but one person is convinced from the start that the young man is guilty of murder but one juror does not feel that the case has been proved. As tempers and the temperature rises slowly the others start to examine their feelings and prejudices and look towards reality rather then emotions to see if the boy is guilty or not. They start to look for truth in the case and themselves.

 

What both plays have in common is a hero who stands apart from others because he is not afraid to take on what he feels is injustice. They both in their own ways show courage and the courage of their convictions. Sometimes in life that is a difficult thing to do because we are afraid of the consequences of our standing up for what we believe in especially in the face of opposition from those who are perceived as more powerful then ourselves.

 

Twice this year I have had to go against powerful businesses because they tried to rip off my mother. JC Penney had refused to honor a free shipping promise they made when they sent an item my mother paid for. Sprint refused to honor a free upgrade and 10% discount promise made to mother for renewing her contract. In both cases they found that they were going to have to deal with a very angry daughter. Both companies backed down when they realized that I would take action against them if they did not live up to their promises. A weapon we as consumers have is taking our business elsewhere. No one rips off my mom. It would have been easier to take the position that they were big companies and that the little person can’t fight bureaucracy. They were in the wrong however and big business or not they were going to treat my mom in an honorable manner.

 

One of the most difficult things to do sometimes is take a stand. It can be a very uncomfortable position to be in. If you see someone acting in a manner that is not honorable and shows a total lack of respect towards another human being because of prejudice the easier path is to say nothing. You know that you aren’t going to be able to remove the prejudice from another being. Only you yourself can change your understanding of how your life should be lived according to the principles that we should use to guide our lives. If however you choose to remain silent aren’t you violating your own principles? I believe as our forefathers put in writing that “all men are created equal and are endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights and among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” I also believe Christ when he says to “love thy neighbor as thyself.”

 

One of the songs from Les Miserables is At the End of the Day. A question I always ask myself when faced with a situation is “at the end of the day how will I feel about myself if I do or do not take a certain action?” Sometimes I feel like I am tilting at windmills but at  the end of the day I can truly say that I feel I did what I felt was right and honorable. You have to be at peace with yourself and your ideals. After all someone has to keep those pesky windmills in line.

 

The picture is the latest in the Guardian series and is called Guardian of Courage.