Thursday, August 20, 2015

"Honesty is the first chapter in the book of wisdom." 
      Thomas Jefferson was the third president of our fine country. He also wrote the Declaration of Independence, and was the founder of the University of Virginia. He was known as a public official, philosopher, and historian. He was a member of the Continental Congress. In his family life, he had six children, but only two of which lived through adulthood.  Finally, he was a founding father of America.
     I pride myself on being a very honest person. If I were asked to describe myself in one word, it would be honest. This quote is all about honesty, which I obviously value. Here, Thomas Jefferson suggests that honesty is the number one policy by saying that its the first chapter of the book of wisdom. If you don't already know, the dictionary definition of wisdom is the quality of having experience, knowledge, and good judgement; the quality of being wise. So our friend Tom is obviously a wise person, with his political and educational background and all. He is a good person to get advice from. (By the way, you know when you are always asked the stupid question, "If you could meet one dead person, who would  it be?" I always said Thomas Jefferson. Funny right?)  I find it interesting that this long ago people had some of the same basic values that people have today. I guess that reveals something about human nature though. 
      When I was a little girl, the most trouble I ever got in was for lying. At a young age, I was taught to be truthful all of the time, no matter who I was talking to. This underlying childhood value still lies within in me. (Ha ha do you get it? Because it lies within me but I don't lie.) And I think that the reason I am such an awful liar is that I never have gotten much practice of it. Also, I always get really hurt when people lie to me. I don't care who you are, whether it be my mother, best friend or just a good old acquaintance, it will be difficult for me to forgive you.
      While honesty is something you should strive to have continually, there is a time and a place where sugarcoating is necessary. Don't take something so literally that its to a point of irrationality. Just use your common sense when dealing with sensitive topics. 
     Thanks for reading my thoughts of honesty.
(PS I apologize for the awful pun I just couldn't help myself.)
       
          Mr. Thomas Jefferson
      

16 comments:

  1. I agree 100%. I think honesty is definitely very important, and I also pride myself on being a very honest person.

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  2. I really like how you give your own childhood experience as an example of how you love honesty. Like how you were taught to be honest from the start.

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  4. I really like the way that you have put your thoughts and humor into your piece of writing. I agree with you and your quote about honesty and I feel the same way when someone lies to me too.

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  5. I thought that the ending was funny and overall really good!

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  6. Thomas Jefferson is not my idol like you, haha, but I do see where your coming from and I lied a few times as a child too and I learned as I got older to trust and be truthful no matter what and I also enjoyed the puns you told us.

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  7. I like how you talked about today compared to the past. It's really interesting that you like Thomas Jefferson since you don't really know him, because he's dead. But I like how you can get to know someone based off of things they say and then relate it to yourself.

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  8. This blog post is very focused on honesty, and its great that honesty is something you take seriously. Ask yourself this: Is there ever a case where its better not to say anything than to be truthful?

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  9. I agree with you honesty should be #1, and i liked how you connected your background to Thomas Jefferson's background throughout your post.

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  10. Abby I really like how you incorporated yourself into this blog post and how you say "our friend Tom." That makes readers really understand how much you went and really dug up the past.

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  11. This was entertaining to read and I liked how you told how the quote you chose specifically relates to you, using examples like of how when you were little. I agree with you that honesty is what is most important and this was very well written.

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  12. I really liked the quote you picked and I think that it really shows the kind of person you are, especially when you used several of your memories. I could really tell that you are an honest person and I agree that it is a very important trait to have. You used a lot of voice, and this had a lot of personality.

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  13. You really showed your voice in this post, and I love how you could hear your thoughts in it.

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  14. I'm too caught up on the puns to actually make a comment. Pretend I said something insightful, okay?

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    Replies
    1. Wow truly inspiring comment. Very insightful, and changed my entire viewpoint on the subject.

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  15. I love your puns and all your parenthetical comments. You definitely established a very HONEST, humorous voice here. Glad to have you in class!

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