The following remarkable column was first published on Sunday, December 14th, 2008 in the Press Democrat. The student is my student. We’ll call him RV. [js]
By Paul Gullixson
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
We recently received this letter here at The Press Democrat:
“Dear Sir
Madam, I am writing to you because I want to turn a wrong into a right. Over the past few weeks I have been paying for one newspaper and taking two. To make things worse, I sold the extra copies to my fellow 8th graders at school. I realize that I benefited from your loss, and I am sorry.
I realize now that my actions were dishonest and unkind. Enclosed is a money order, and I hope it will sufficiently cover your loss.
Sincerely,
An 8th Grade Student.”
Enclosed was a money order for $4. There was no return address. I’ve shared this letter many times in recent days and decided that I would like to respond here.
Dear ‘Student’:
Today, I am celebrating my 10-year anniversary here at The Press Democrat. I mention that because in all those years of opening letters to the editor, I don’t recall ever coming across a note quite like yours.
I’m impressed, for reasons I hope will be evident.
First of all, anybody who can sell newspapers to eighth-graders in this day and age is OK with me. I’ve been led to believe that eighth-graders are no more interested in newspapers than they are asparagus.
My colleagues were equally impressed when I read your letter aloud at our department heads’ meeting and handed your $4 money order to our controller. (You should have seen his face. It’s not often he receives revenue from the Editorial Department.)
They had one question for you:
How are you at selling quarter-page ads? You may have a future in newspapers — as long as there are newspapers in the future.
Some say newspapers are dying. I hope not. At the least, we’re certainly experiencing some dramatic changes. Many businesses are being pushed to the brink.
But I fear there’s something else that’s dying out there, something more important than newspapers. You addressed it with your letter.
It’s called integrity.
As David Brooks, a New York Times columnist, recently wrote, “Recessions breed pessimism.” Crime goes up. So does lying and cheating.
So does forgetting to admit when we’re wrong.
You say that you know your actions were “dishonest and unkind.” If only we could hear such words from those responsible for our current financial crisis — and so many things that are happening in our world.
Adults have made a mess of things, and I’m afraid we’re going to be leaving your generation with some hefty bills. I don’t know how to begin to apologize to you for that. But bills and bailouts are not the only thing I worry that my generation is handing down.
A recent study found 64 percent of U.S. high school students say they’ve cheated on a test in the past year. Thirty percent have stolen from a store. Both of those numbers have risen steadily in recent years.
That, to me, is more discouraging than anything we’ve heard from Wall Street.
The study by the Josephson Institute in Los Angeles also found that using the Internet to plagiarize an assignment (36 percent), lying to parents about something significant (83 percent) and lying to save money (42 percent) also were up.
Michael Josephson, founder and president of the institute, put it this way: “In a society drenched with cynicism, young people can look at it and say, ‘Why shouldn’t we? Everyone does it.’ ”
Well, maybe not everyone.
Which is one reason I wanted to publish your letter today. Some here at the paper have suggested that there’s a parent, maybe even a teacher, who encouraged — ordered? — you to write this.
To that I say, what does it matter? Whether you wrote this alone or with someone lurking over your shoulder, both are evidence of someone in your life who cared enough to teach you the value of accountability and honesty.
Consider yourself fortunate. Not everyone has someone like that.
Maybe this letter was even embarrassing for you to write. If so, it’s probably equally embarrassing now to see me responding in print.
But I wanted to commend you. There’s no bravery in conformity. It takes real courage to ignore the cynicism of the world, the temptation to hide, the encouragement to avoid, and stand up and do the right thing.
Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. I’ve waxed philosophic long enough. I fear I may be getting melancholy on my anniversary. I just wanted to thank you for your message and your reminder of something worth much more than $4.
I don’t know where our country is going. But what I do know is that the things we can’t afford to leave behind are fundamentals like integrity, accountability, hope, faith.
They still matter. They always will.
Take pride in this letter. Maybe someday, you will even encourage someone to do the same — admit a mistake and seek to make amends.
If so, you’ll do more than that just turn a wrong into a right. You’ll be a leader.
And those don’t just fall out of newspaper racks, you know.
(Paul Gulllixson is editorial director for The Press Democrat. E-mail him at paul.gullixson@pressdemocrat.com)
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