Loyalty: A Most Precious Trait…
Fidelitas usque ad mortem is Latin for “Loyalty unto death” – strong words, particularly given contemporary society’s emphasis on the “self.” In fact, when was the last time we heard anyone speak about loyalty, let alone bring up death in the same sentence? Yes, we’ve heard the “until death do us part” refrain of wedding vows, but then again, we’ve also heard that 50% of marriages end in divorce, that is, if people marry anymore.
Loyalty, a most precious trait, let’s face it, is out of vogue. It’s a trait of yore when a person’s word was their bond, and people meant what they said. That’s not to say that loyalty doesn’t exist, because it does. It’s just further and farther between; it’s the diamond in the rough surrounded by a sea of broken promises, un-kept words, and outright deceit. And it’s for this reason that loyalty, when stumbled upon, is to be treasured for the precious trait it is.
Loyalty isn’t necessarily a function of trust (see To Trust or Not to Trust…), for many people stay true to a relationship or cause, even when that relationship or cause doesn’t stay true to them. In many cases, loyalty isn’t a matter of logic, but a matter of emotion. It keeps one hanging on, even when truth and circumstances speak otherwise. As noble as this may sound, it can’t be without consequences – self-destructive or otherwise.
True loyalty is a two-way street. It’s built upon mutual trust and mutual respect. Ups and downs will exist, but so long as trust and respect remain, loyalty will be unwavering in its hold. It’s this loyalty that makes for a foundation of love, and with it an everlasting bond of allegiance to the person or cause in question. To experience loyalty at such a level is to experience a level of empowerment unequalled by anything else. It’s a level that few obtain, and many yearn for, if we be so fortunate to achieve it in our life time.
Whether we do or not, is largely dependent upon us. We can’t command loyalty, but we can exemplify it. Is it our method to treat people as a means to an end, or is it our method to treat people for who they are? Do we see them as tools in an arsenal to procure what it is we’re after, or do we see them as fellow humans on this quest we call life?
How we answer these questions will chiefly determine the amount of loyalty we’ll experience in our lifetime. Put ourselves front and center, and be prepared for a life void of it; put others front and center, and it’s ours to have. Which will it be?
The decision is ours and ours alone…
For more, check out The C.A.T. Principle: Change, Action, Trust – Words to Live By, a Global Ebook Awards GOLD Winner for Best Self-Help Non-Fiction Ebook of 2014, available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble. See the latest Amazon reviews here. Now revised and expanded, and a Nominee for the Best Self-Help Non-Fiction Ebook of the 2015 Global Ebook Awards.
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A 2014 Global Ebook Awards GOLD Winner for Best Non-fiction Self-help Ebook.
2015 Global Ebook Awards Nominee for Best Self-Help Non-Fiction Ebook