I like to think that I’m a ‘straight down the middle’ kind of bird. I like to tell it as it is. And yet, even I am sometimes tempted to tell a little white lie to get myself out of trouble. You see, my owner has worked very hard to try to get me to go to the toilet in the kitchen sink. And sometimes I don’t quite make it there in time. And if he finds an ‘offensive deposit’ where it ought not to be, I tell him that it must have been the calling card the garden robin that had somehow sneaked in unnoticed.
A few days ago, my owner himself became the guilty party while he was out driving. He needed to buy a tube of toothpaste, so he pulled off the motorway into an extremely busy supermarket carpark. As he edged back into a parking space, he misjudged the distance of the car behind, and he suddenly felt a jolt. And his first reaction was denial: ‘No, I can’t have just bumped the car behind. I’ve been driving for 45 years, and I’ve never been responsible for bumping into another car!’
But he was definitely guilty, as the driver of the other car was quick to point out. Fortunately, the damage was minimal, with just a friendly exchange of paint smears having taken place between the two cars. And on seeing the evidence, my owner then quickly realised that he had no option but to be totally honest and own up to what he had just done.
We currently live in a world in which more and more human leaders lie on a daily basis. Some of them actively pursue a policy in which they turn the truth around 180 degrees and claim the exact opposite of what they have just done. And their loyal human followers believe whatever they say.
“There is one way to find out if a man is honest, -ask him. If he says ‘yes,’ you know he is crooked.”
(Groucho Marx: [1890-1977]: American comedian and one of several brothers who all become comedic stars).
Honesty starts with small things like car bumps and then builds up to something much greater at a national level. And if we do something that is our fault, and immediately get feelings of denial afterwards, we need to give ourselves a serious talking to. Because a society based on lies and untruth is a society in which nobody benefits. Instead, it leads to mayhem and becomes a breeding ground for dictators. All of which means that I’d better stop putting the blame on the robin!
“Nothing in this world is harder than speaking the truth.”
(Fyodor Dostoevsky: [1821-1881]: Famous Russian novelist).
“Honesty is the best policy. If I lose my honour, I lose myself.”
(William Shaespeare: [1564-1616]: Esteemed English playwright).
“Honesty and transparency make you vulnerable. Be honest and transparent anyway.”
(Mother Teresa: [1910-1997]: Catholic nun of Albanian descent who dedicated her life to helping the poor and needy of Calcutta, India and beyond).
“No matter how plain a woman may be, if truth and honesty are written across her face, she will be beautiful.” (Eleanor Roosevelt: [1884-1962]: Wife of U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt).
“Whoever is careless with the truth in small matters cannot be trusted with important matters.”
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