Remember that you are dust.

What harsh but necessary words these are. It is so easy to become vaunted, prideful and bigger than we truly are. In the face of the Olympics and the almost super human achievements we forget that we will age, we will become slow, we will some day carry a cane, our eyesight and hearing will fail and we will die. We remember that we are dust because we need the humility to achieve the most supper human efforts. Pride is the biggest stumbling block. Pride will slow you down. Pride will age you faster. Pride will lead to mental distress. Pride will isolate you. Humility opens you to others help. Humility guides you to wisdom and grace. Humility attracts others. Humility paves the way for peace as we age, become frail, and when we face our deaths. Let us not forget that the word humility is derived from humus meaning earth or dust. Humility is the ground of so much that is virtuous and good. Humility is even the grounding of justice. Think of the outcry over the judges awarding of the gold medal to the Russian pairs figure skating over the Canadian couple. Pride leads people to compromise their principles and their judgments. Humility demands justice, principle and truth. Indeed even in our conflicts of terrorism there is writ large for us the need for humility lest we in our hurt, anger and disfigured pride miss a truth that might save us. Remember that you are dust.