What's it mean to be a man?

[peter]

I've been thinking a bit lately: what's it mean to be a man? I mean, a real MAN - not some blustering blowhard or bully, but a complete man in the total sense of the word. Any thoughts?

[Alan_OldStudent]

I've been thinking a bit lately: what's it mean to be a man? I mean, a real MAN - not some blustering blowhard or bully, but a complete man in the total sense of the word. Any thoughts?

I'd start by emphasizing the need to be a complete human.

Regards,

Alan

[Andy62]

"Far better is it to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure... than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much, because they live in a gray twilight that knows not victory nor defeat."
Theodore Roosevelt

[gruntbrain]

Staying in the "game" inspite of ....

[ben alexander]

I think I can sum up being a man by quoting a classic poem - If, by Rudyard Kipling. Its always helped me in times of trouble, and top actor Michael Caine (Alfred in the latest Batman movies, with Christian Bale), swears by it, too.


IF you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise:
If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;
If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools:

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breathe a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: 'Hold on!'

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
' Or walk with Kings - nor lose the common touch,
if neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,
If all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And - which is more - you'll be a Man, my son!

Ben

[Max McKinley]

Ben, that is a great post. I have read this poem before, and it is one of those that expresses the character of a man. This is a tough thread because there are many ways and attributes that can define a man. I always look to my father and my grandfathers as examples of men of integrity and strength.

Blessings,

[Aaron Hoot]

The poem by Kipling is one of my favorites. That is one thing that has really hurt the world. We have very few real men. We have a lot of guys but not a lot of men. You have guys crying about everything. A real man deals with circumstances and goes with it. The perfect example of a real man is our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

Aaron

[Nathan]

This is a very interesting post. First off I would like to thank Ben for posting that poem it was amazing! Second I agree with Aaron. I REAL man deals with circumstances, goes with it, and does the best he can. Other than Jesus Christ ( Who is the realest man that has EVER walked this earth) and our Heavenly Father I would have to say my Father is one of the greatest men I have ever known. Another is our own John Peterson! He is yet another example of what a real man is and proves it every day. I personally want to be a man like our Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, my Father, John Peterson, and quite a few of you here on the forum. These are the men I look up to and want to be like. All the best everyone.


---Nathan