My Moral Voice...

SteveG had a post over at the Playground last week in which he asked commentors to talk about the unsung heroes who have influenced them academically. Since then I've been re-thinking this question with a slightly different connotation: Who has influenced me morally?

SteveG's a fan of saying that knowing right from wrong is the easy part...but from where do we get that knowledge? I'm sure there have been many in my life who have imparted bits and pieces of moral knowledge to me. My mom took me to church when I was young, yelled at me when I did something wrong, and praised me when I did something right. My grandparents and my Aunt Anne definitely guided me in moral ways. However, there's one voice that sticks out more than any other. It's the voice I here when I know I'm being an idiot, about to do something stupid, or something immoral. Uncle John was a pragmatist by necessity (he worked in the coal mines and then in the steel mills) and his morality reflected this. It was always simple...there were no debates over what's right and wrong and you always did what was right. He didn't take time to mull over questions of how he should act, he just knew. He taught me these lessons working in the garden, over fresh cucumbers in the shed, while cutting up an apple on the swing, or walking around our little hometown with me in a little red wagon. He taught me the value of hard work and, mostly inadvertantly and by example, the way I should act in life and the way I should treat others (with respect and modesty).

It wasn't until years later...years after his death, that I realized it was Uncle John's voice that was there telling me not to screw up. Honestly, I can't even remember for sure exactly what he sounded like, but I still know it's his voice that has became my moral compass, my moral voice...my concsience.

So how 'bout you?? Who's your moral voice??