Far too often it seems that cheaters and brutes win the day, and honest and kind folks get the short end of the stick. This poem is a meditation reminding myself that character, whether good or bad, and whether of an individual or a nation, produces destiny. In short, you can’t cheat reality. The means produce the ends. The ancient wisdom of character is destiny is a version of Gandhi’s famous, “Be the change you want to see in the world.” Of course, one person doesn’t get to create (or destroy) our collective destiny, but we each get to add our character to the world, moving the world in one direction or the other. Character matters. May the world be full of hearty characters with robust character.<\/p>\n