From the Heartland
What follows are four short sentences that frequently appear in Louise Penny’s Chief Inspector Armand Gamache mysteries. “I was wrong.” “I’m sorry.” “I don’t know.” and “I need help.” For Inspector Gamache they are four statements that lead to wisdom. He was told them by a supervisor early in his career and he passed them on to each new recruit that entered his department. He told them only once and left it to the person to decide what to do with them. Let us take a short look at each of them.
“I was wrong.” None of us ever get everything right all of the time. To say one is sometimes wrong is just acknowledging the human condition. Nevertheless, sometimes we have become so wedded to an action or statement, even when it has proved to be wrong, we tenaciously continue to maintain we are right. Enormous amounts of energy, resources, and relationships can be spent defending a mistake that could have been avoided simply by saying “I was wrong.”
“I’m sorry.” Penny very often has Camache telling persons who have suffered because of the actions of others he’s sorry for what happened to them. There are occasions when he tells someone he is sorry because of what they have suffered as a result of Armand’s actions. And then there are those times he is sorry because he can not do more for someone else. Saying he is sorry helps the Inspector to be in concert with others as a fellow human being.
“I don’t know.” In one of the churches I served there was a lady who liked to remind me, “If I knew everything, I would not need God.” All of us spend a lifetime learning things we do not know. Knowing what we need to know is the beginning of wisdom and understanding. The first step in solving a problem is discovering the right questions to ask. Very often in answering one question we find ourselves four or five new questions.
“I need help.” Some people have no trouble asking for help. There are others who even in the most difficult of circumstances would never dream of asking for assistance. Inspector Camache has a reputation of being able to solve difficult mysteries. Nevertheless, he is not too proud to ask for help.
The Book of Proverbs has a great deal to say about the sin of pride and the virtue of humility. “When pride comes, then comes disgrace; but wisdom is with the humble.” (Prov. 11:2) “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.” (Prov. 16:18) “A person’s pride will bring humiliation, but one who is lowly in spirit will obtain honor.” (Prov. 29:23) Jesus said in the Parable of the Great Dinner: “For all who exalt themselves will humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” (Luke 14:11)
At the heart of the four statements that lead to wisdom is a sense of humility. The opposite of the four statements – “I am always right, I never have to say I am sorry, I know everything, I don’t need help – are marks of a prideful nature. Attaining wisdom and being prideful would seem not to be compatible.
Proverbs 22:4 says that the rewards for those who are humble are riches, honor and life. In the Camache mysteries as Armand puts into practice the four statements he experiences a sense of peace and tranquility that sees him through the chaotic times in his life. The humble nature that the four statements produce helps him to stay connected with the people closest to him and to reach out to others, especially those who come from much different perspectives and persuasions.