At a young age, both Sidney Poitier and I learned the value of poverty. Although we came to that understanding in a different time, from a different race, a different generation, and on different corners of the planet, we both had families that left a legacy of the significant value of commitment, discipline, and character rather than mere pleasure. He and I both understood as small children before either of us could tell you why, that as Poitier put it “by having very little, I had it very good.”
He learned directly by experiencing that poverty as a young child. I, a generation younger, learned indirectly through the legacy of my parents who made sure that even though I was raised in a fairly cushy, white, middle-class environment the lessons they learned in harder economic times were not lost on me.
But Poitier, far more accomplished than I, says it in a way that touched my soul. It bears repeating. So here is a taste of what Poitier has to say about building character in an affluent, pleasure-seeking society, which I hope will whet your appetite enough to find the book and read it in full.
In talking about his own parents, Poitier writes:
"Reggie Poitier (Sydney Poitier’s father) knew what his legacy would be. He knew and believed in the importance of his role as a father, and he knew that it extended well beyond his capacity as a breadwinner. He believed in the responsibility and the dignity of his task as a bearer of standards and as an enforcer of standards and he wouldn’t let his relative position in the economic hierarchy of a crazy tourist economy in any way belittle that role. . . The fact is you can’t do that kind of parenting if your values aren’t clear to you in terms of your own life. You can’t be passing on to your kids a strong foundation if you don’t have one yourself, because whatever foundation you do or don’t have –that’s what you’re going to pass on. And when we pass on something that doesn’t serve our children, we have to be responsible for that."
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