Quick Hands
David Wilson (68)
Vainglory is a disordered pursuit of false triumph, excessive and boastful pride in achievement or ability. We see it when someone boasts about some relatively minor achievement, or even focuses on praising themselves for doing what they are supposed to do anyway. It is a challenge in all sorts of life contexts. It may be caused by our society’s desire to seek praise for everything.
For example, we can tend to tell stories that exaggerate our achievements – older men like me can tend to run faster, swim longer the further we get from actual running or swimming! This may be ridiculous rather than harmful, but at point do we actually tell stories that give a false impression of our true capacities.
We can, if we are vainglorious as a school, take HSC achievement and sporting success and then turn them into boasting, rather than being satisfied with the honest pleasure of a job well done. Such boasting as a School might lead us to take short cuts academically or resort to underhanded means of recruitment for sports teams. We would have fallen prey to vainglory.
As an individual one might boast pathetically about sexual contests, money, possessions in ways that reveal a desire to be thought of in terms of exaggerated ‘fame’. I have known some real jerks in my life, and always they are despicable because they try so hard to impress with such vainglorious talk. One finds oneself desperately trying to escape their loving self-obsession.
We ought to seek to be the best we
can be: morally, academically, musically or in whatever area we are active. We ought to be pleased with doing something well. We do not need to tell the whole
world about it. People will notice the reliable, confident, competent man. They will like and accept you for it. They will appreciate your modesty, they will recognise your proper motivation.
They will be repelled by vainglory.
Dr T.A. Wright
Headmaster
No changes coming at Shore while he is in charge.
For example, we can tend to tell stories that exaggerate our achievements – older men like me can tend to run faster, swim longer the further we get from actual running or swimming! This may be ridiculous rather than harmful, but at point do we actually tell stories that give a false impression of our true capacities.
We can, if we are vainglorious as a school, take HSC achievement and sporting success and then turn them into boasting, rather than being satisfied with the honest pleasure of a job well done. Such boasting as a School might lead us to take short cuts academically or resort to underhanded means of recruitment for sports teams. We would have fallen prey to vainglory.
As an individual one might boast pathetically about sexual contests, money, possessions in ways that reveal a desire to be thought of in terms of exaggerated ‘fame’. I have known some real jerks in my life, and always they are despicable because they try so hard to impress with such vainglorious talk. One finds oneself desperately trying to escape their loving self-obsession.
We ought to seek to be the best we
can be: morally, academically, musically or in whatever area we are active. We ought to be pleased with doing something well. We do not need to tell the whole
world about it. People will notice the reliable, confident, competent man. They will like and accept you for it. They will appreciate your modesty, they will recognise your proper motivation.
They will be repelled by vainglory.
Dr T.A. Wright
Headmaster
No changes coming at Shore while he is in charge.
