The true gentleman is a the man whose conduct proceeds
from good will and an acute sense of propriety,
and whose self control is equal to all emergencies;
Who does not make the poor man conscious of his poverty;
the obscure man of his obscurity,
or any man of his inferiority or deformity;
Who is himself humbled if necessary
compels him to humble another;
Who does not flatter wealth, cringe before power,
or boast of his own possessions or achievements;
Who speaks with frankness
but always with sincerity and sympathy;
Whose deed follows his word;
Who thinks of the rights and feelings of others
rather than his own;
And who appears well in any company,
a man with whom hoor is sacred and virtue safe.
-John Walter Wayland
Went to a devastating funeral of a friend lost suddenly and far too young. This was on his memorial card and just was beautiful. Since it was written in 1899, I will forgive the author for not making it a gender neutral piece :) But these words moved me. And I hope to live my life in such a way to meet these standards.
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