The Problem of Pride

In the old days, pride was considered to be one of the seven deadly sins. Now, it seems to have become a virtue.
I’m proud to be an American, a member of this or that race or religion or anything else I’m partial to. 
There is even such a thing as “criminal pride,” getting something over on someone else, getting away with dishonesty and criminal acts. It’s only wrong if one gets caught.
T-shirts, banners, yard signs and bumper stickers promote our personal brand, the high regard with which we hold ourselves and our kind.
Are we brands to be promoted or are we human beings to be experienced? 
Are we more in touch with what we are grateful for or what we are proud of?
Do our children experience us placing a greater emphasis on them making good grades or being kind?
Too often, we are driven by fear. The fear of not being good enough. The fear of not being accepted. And we pass that fear onto our children, an insatiable desire to please and be in the middle of the herd, unaware of where it’s going or why it is going there.
Can we become reacquainted with kindness and a generosity of spirit? A word of encouragement, a gift of our time and our resources, a welcoming embrace that allows us to become more than we imagined we could be.

From: The Memory of Grace (Borderland Books, 2018)