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The Ancient Archer: Campfire

One night, as we sat around a campfire an old man came in from the dark. He asked to warm himself by our fire and we all agreed, welcoming him. The topics turned and bounced as they always do, until someone asked the old man about the mysteries of life. He looked at each of us and placing a piece of wood on the fire, these were his words.

“People, can only be judged on three things:
Integrity: The ability to make yourself do, what you should do, when you should do it, whether you want to or not.
Ethics: The ability to follow through on a resolution, long after the emotions with which it was made, has faded.
Honesty: "To your own self be true and it will follow as night does the day, you cannot be false to anyone.

Unfortunately, most people only have standards, which they will lower as the need arises for comfort.”

He placed another piece of wood on the fire, picking up his bow and quiver bid us a goodnight. As he out walked into the cold, we sat and stared at the fire. Some say he was a teacher, some say he was a messenger. Over the many years and countless faces at campfires, I have seen that same stare at the fire as we had that night. I often wonder if ours was the only campfire he came to that night.

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Leaders do not always make the right decisions, however they will always right their decisions.

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Have a sense of mission, a belief in yourself and the value of all you do, no matter the size of the task. Focus only on accomplishments rather than activities.

The Ancient Archer