“We need to offer the coming generations an education in morals as rigorous as their technical and career education,” writes political and cultural commentator David Brooks in The Atlantic. What might be the foundation for the main elements of this rigorous education in morals?
As I thought about this question, I kept returning to two of my parents go to maxims, directed to me—and my siblings—on a regular basis. They offered me a springboard to answer this question.
The first maxim was, “Use your common sense.” The second maxim, meant to reinforce the first, was one of the worst things they could say about someone: “That person doesn’t have any common sense.”
As a young person, I was attracted to the simplicity of these maxims, though not always sure how to apply them as I navigated my way around Collinwood, our Italian-American neighborhood in Cleveland, Ohio. They have been with me for over 70 years, shaping my perspective on life.
