Truth

[The Stage is on Fire] is a page-turner in which, much like life, there are no easy answers and yet each step of the journey yields insight and hope. This work of heart must not be missed!

Melanie Faith

Creative Writing Teacher, Essayist & Poet.

Katie Steedly’s first-person piece [The Unspeakable Gift] is a riveting retelling of her participation in a National Institutes of Health study that aided her quest to come to grips with her life of living with a rare genetic disorder. Her writing is superb.

The Society of Professional Journalists

In recognition of receiving the Dateline Award for the Washingtonian Magazine essay, The Unspeakable Gift.

I thank you … It is the authenticity of your “class notes”; and it is the delicacy and skill with which you present the nuances of classroom life and the actuality of your students’ and fellow teachers’ lives.

Maxine Greene

Philosopher and Education Scholar

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/tro͞oTH/ noun the quality or state of being true

that which is true or in accordance with fact or reality
a fact or belief that is accepted as true

Truth was my Word of the Year a few years ago. Truth is important. In this environment where the very existence of truth is being challenged, I want to stand up for truth. Science exists. Facts exist. Evidence exists. Truth exists. Telling the truth is always the best path. Truth is necessary for the foundation of relationships to stay intact. With truth, sound decisions are made. Without truth, people can be manipulated and controlled. Without truth, right is no different from wrong.

We can think about truth in three ways: personal truth, political truth, and global truth.

Personal truth is the still, small voice.

It is intuition, gut, and sixth sense. Personal truth means keeping your word to yourself and others, even/especially when it is difficult. Personal truth means caring for your body. Personal truth means curiosity and learning and beginner’s mind. Personal truth living in integrity.

Political truth means holding leaders to a high standard of conduct.

Policy must be developed on facts. Decisions must be based on information. Accountability must occur when the truth is slanted, denied, disregarded, or lost. Political truth cannot exist in corruption, lies, and chaos. Political truth can be simply understood. Within a framework of political truth, our leaders feel responsible for representing constituents honestly, fiercely, and in a spirit of goodwill. Protecting our laws, norms, and institutions guides our leaders’ actions. The public good is not viewed as separate from the private good; rather, the public good is the foundation of the private good. The public good loses when the lines of political truth get blurred. Political truth also encompasses our individual responsibility to lead in our daily lives.

Global truth means understanding our individual actions impact our world.

Calling, purpose, existential projects, and passion are all a part of living a global truth. Global truth understands we are all connected. We live and die together. Global truth means service to others. Global truth means generosity and gratitude, not because they are nice, but because they are the embodiment of our interconnection.