Considering Character

 

At Smack Dab, we occasionally partner with schools to reflect on their own monthly (or semesterly, etc.) theme, blogging about how the theme shows up in our own lives and work. This month, we're reflecting on the yearly theme at Willard Middle School in Aldie, Virginia. At WMS, they're Wild Cats, so they show their CLAWS: Character, Leadership, Attitude, Work Ethic and Service. Suggested by Laura Hoyler, 6th grade instructor.

 

How do you assess someone’s character? Sometimes it’s easy. The person is so obviously awful, narcissistic, and scheming that there’s no question their character is not one to emulate. Other times, there’s someone who’s so inspiring or genuinely caring that you know you want to strive to be more like them.

 

My middle grade novels deal with presidents, specifically the first three: George Washington (George Washington & the Magic Hat), John Adams (John Adams & the Magic Bobblehead), and Thomas Jefferson (Thomas Jefferson & the Return of the Magic Hat).

 

Here are quotes from the three of them about character:

 

“I hope I shall possess firmness and virtue enough to maintain what I consider the most enviable of all titles, the character of an honest man.”—George Washington, letter to Alexander Hamilton, Aug. 28, 1788

 

“The longer I live, the more I read, the more patiently I think, and the more anxiously I inquire, the less I seem to know...Do justly. Love mercy. Walk humbly. This is enough.”—John Adams, letter to his granddaughter Caroline Amelia Smith de Windt, Jan. 24, 1820

 

“Honesty is the first chapter in the book of wisdom.”—Thomas Jefferson, letter to Nathaniel Macon, Jan. 12, 1819

 

In my books, I try to give a nuanced portrayal of these early presidents, balancing all sides of their characters. Yes, they were inspiring leaders who helped create a country that endures almost 250 years later, but two of them, Washington and Jefferson, were slaveholders. It’s a complex legacy.

 

In a month that brings us both Presidents’ Day and Black History Month, as well as the second impeachment trial of a former inhabitant of the White House, presidential character is well worth considering.

 

--Deborah Kalb