Honesty & Facing the Music

We always say, "Practice what you preach." However, students don't stay around us teachers so that they can see and learn from what we do. So today in class meeting I decided to tell my homeroom class two of my stories to demostrate the ideas "honesty" and "face the music."

The first story is about honesty and facing the music. It happened around 8 or more years ago. One afternoon after school when I was backing up my car, I bumped into a colleague's car. Immediately, I went to the gate chamber and used the phone there to call the general affairs office to find out whose car it was. However, the car plate number was not on the list. Then I left a message on the windshield saying how sorry I was and that I would pay for the repair, along with my phone number.

That night, I got a phone call from a colleague telling me who the car owner was. Several days later, the colleague called me again and told me the repair cost: around NT$4700. As promised, I paid for the repair "willingly."

Some people might say I was stupid, or that I should have driven away. Yes, I could have gotten away with it since nobody was around then. However, I'm glad that I did the right thing: be honest and face the music. A clear conscience is worth even more than gold.

The second story is about facing the music. It happened longer ago. One evening three students I taught at Chiehshow Junior High School a few years before came to my home. After the visit, because it was late, I drove them home. Having dropped them all off, I headed home. However, right after turning right at the intersection of Minsheng East Rd. and Fuhsing North Rd, I was stopped by a police officer. He told me I violated a traffic regulation--no turning right on a red light. I didn't know about this rule until then. While the police officer was writing a ticket, I remained silent, waiting for him to give me the ticket. He looked up from the ticket at me, asking, "Why don't you request a lighter punishment?" I answered, "I made a mistake and have to face the music."

Honesty and facing the music are the best policies.  They simplify our life.