The Hero of the Day

Modesty, propriety can lead to notoriety
You could end up as the only one
Gentleness, sobriety are rare in this society
At night a candle's brighter than the sun

~Sting

lyrics: http://www.lyricsfreak.com/s/sting/#share

The stanza above is a verse from the song, Englishman in New York by Sting and I'm quoting it because my roast beef is fantastic and it doesn't deserve to be dissected of its most minute fatty content. 

Bear with me.

I'm talking about what Sting referred to as "manners maketh man," which could just as easily be manners making the person -- that's how I'm using it here by the way.  In his song, Sting is quoting somebody else -- likely William Wykeham -- but it could have been a few others who are famous for saying the same thing and things that are similar ever since 14th century in Europe.  http://www.answers.com/topic/manners-maketh-man  In Sting's mind, the hero of the day is the person who coined that phrase.  Though he could also be referring to the person who, in the face of life's challenges and indeed, personal affronts, maintains a sense of propriety and grace.

Am I hero?  Do I exercise propriety and grace under pressure? 

I'll give you a hint, I thought for about 10 minutes trying to decide whether I should answer a definite "yes" or not: wondering if a straight "yes" would come off as boastful and self-congratulatory.  I decided to take a break from writing to make a quick tea, during which time I thought about omitting the paragraph above entirely, thus relieving me of any obligation to address the loaded questions above.

I wouldn't call myself a manners Hero per se, but I'll admit that I can contribute some grace and propriety under pressure as well as during more challenging moments.  Take for example, my (now) famous fantastic roast beef.  I'm not a huge meat-eater and so by default, I don't prepare a lot of meat dishes.  At least once a week, however, I'll make The Roast.  I season it, braise it and then slow cook it for the afternoon.  It's very good.  There's another weekly ritual that goes along my weekly roast that I find challenging: the dissecting of the fat from The Roast by one of my diners. 

Here's the thing.  I think I'm buying a fairly decent cut of meat and I know I'm cooking it satisfactorily.  My picky diner even asks for seconds and thirds. But most of the meat is in shreds on the corner of his plate -- cast aside because an ounce of taste ... err fat was located in the fibers of the meat.  As the person cooking the meal, I feel it's my job to provide a satisfying dinner for everybody at the table and it's difficult for me to do this when most of the food that I've taken the afternoon to prepare has been winnowed down to shreds.  The message the diner sends me the cook is twofold: a) you don't know how to buy a decent cut of meat; b) this roast needs to be prepared differently ... fat removed before it hits the table. 

There are mannered guests and mannered hosts.  I'll continue to offer seconds and thirds to my friend, AND I'll take the time to notice the rest of the table enjoying and FINISHING all the meat on their plates.  I'm not going to make my picky eater friend feel uncomfortable by putting him on the spot at the table (he's done a good job of that himself).  The fact is, he's picky.  My playful nickname for him is Princess (of Princess and the Pea) -- he loves this. 

The Hero of the Day = the person who respects themselves, the people they're with and the environment they're in.  Always conscious, but not self-conscious, the hero places people at ease wherever they are because they're at ease wherever they are.   

I'll aim to be The Hero of the Day ... Roast Beef be Damned.