A Lesson Learned at Midnight

By James Q. DuPont

Ever since one midnight, in nineteen hundred and nine, when I first heard my mother crying, I have been groping for beliefs to help me through the rough going and confusions of life. My dad’s voice was low and troubled as he tried to comfort Mother. And in their anguish, they both forgot the nearness of my bedroom. And so, I overheard them. I was only seven then, and while their problem of that time has long since been solved and forgotten, the big discovery I made that night is still right with me: life is not all hearts and flowers; indeed it’s hard and cruel for most of us much of the time. We all have troubles, they just differ in nature, that’s all. And that leads me to my first belief.

I believe the human race is very, very tough—almost impossible to discourage. If it wasn’t, then why do we have such words as “laugh” and “sing” and “music” and “dance”—in the language of all mankind since the beginning of recorded time? This belief makes me downright proud to be a human being.

Next, I believe there is good and evil in all of us. Thomas Mann comes close to expressing what I’m trying to say to you with his carefully worded sentence about the “frightfully radical duality” between the brain and the beast in man—in all of us.

This belief helps me because so long as I remember that there are certain forces of evil ever present in me—and never forget that there is also a divine spark of goodness in me, too—then I find the “score” of my bad mistakes at the end of each day is greatly reduced. “Forewarned of evil, in other words, is half the battle against it.”

I believe in trying to be charitable, in trying to understand and forgive people, especially in trying to forgive very keen or brilliant people. A man may be a genius, you know, but he can still do things that practically break your heart.

I believe most if not all of our very finest thoughts and many of our finest deeds must be kept to ourselves alone—at least until after we die. This used to confuse me. But now I realize that by their very nature, these finest things we do and then cannot talk about are a sort of, well, secret preview of a better life to come.

I believe there is no escape from the rule of life that we must do many, many little things to accomplish even just one big thing. This gives me patience when I need it most.

And then I believe in having the courage to BE YOURSELF. Or perhaps I should say, to be honest with myself. Sometimes this is practically impossible, but I’m sure I should always try.

Finally, and most important to me, I do believe in God. I’m sure there is a very wise and wonderful Being who designed, constructed, and operates this existence as we mortals know it: this universe with its galaxies and spiral nebulae, its stars and moons and planets and beautiful women, its trees and pearls and deep green moss—and its hopes and prayers for peace.