Every now and then when I’m on the road I like to listen to The Bobby Bones show. It’s a morning talk show on a local country radio station hosted by Bobby Estell, otherwise known as “Bobby Bones.”
Something he recently said stirred my mind. It was during “Bobby’s Mailbag” where letters from listeners are offered responses often to solve a problem. The particular issue wasn’t important, but it raised a major ethical and moral dilemma for me. The listener asked if the gift he bought for his wife was a bad one since it wasn’t received the way it was intended. Bobby answered with insight. He said the problem stemmed from how we judge our actions based on our intent while judging others through their actions. So, which is it? Does morality come from our intentions to do either good or bad? Or is morality judged by our actions, not intentions?
The moral dilemma raised by this age-old philosophical question reminded me of college. It was in an ethics class where we were asked to judge the merits of this situation: There is an older person sitting on a bench at a street corner. You approach them assuming they require help crossing the road. You grab their hand and help them across the street. While doing so, a car comes around the corner and physically injuries both persons and leading to the elderly person’s death.
Was your action morally good, bad or indifferent? The intent came from a good place. But the result led to their death. Which is it?
All too often we say people do things because their heart was in the right place, but the didn’t always show it. In life, we don’t get to have it both ways because we don’t make decisions in a vacuum. What we do, what we say, and how we interact with others effects the entirety of society. Doing good by intention doesn’t make up for the mistakes we make in delivery. In other words, we must be judged on the morality of our intent AND on how well we execute.
Take Verna Trujillo, known by many as “Nana,” as an example. She was a dear friend to me and the love of my dear friend and City Councilor, Manny Martinez. She was an awesome sister, daughter and mother. She was diagnosed with diabetes as a young girl losing her leg due to medical complications. She wore a prosthetic giving her the semblance of normalcy and the reality of courage. Life threw her another curveball when her kidneys started to fail. An anonymous donor gave her the gift of extended life. Verna was a fighter for herself, for her family and her mobility. She was a great cook and baker. She loved the scent of lemon. She passed away last week at what age?
Verna exemplified the quintessential pairing of intent with action. Through courage and resilience, she never once accepted charity or pity. Her will to power exhibited at one moment her desire to fulfill life’s beauty through the action of love to everyone she knew. Her actions never once belied her intent; for they were always one and the same.
She once gave me crystal clear advice on both politics and human nature. Her instincts were superb. “People will lie to get what they want,” she would warn. “Be careful”.
She taught us that how well we craft, create, sew, farm, wait on tables, engineer, serve as mother and father also has implications about our life’s work. Intentions don’t stop in our minds; they are fulfilled in the world around us.
Verna learned this in life in general and specifically in putting on the Fiestas which she loved dearly. So often we hear cries for authenticity and love of community. But that is toxic love and Verna would take no part in it. Politicos say they luuuuuv their community but collude, barter and sell their souls to get their way with the mask of good intentions. In the end, politics is about power and the road to its retrieval. Good intentions get muddied with greed and hubris. Staying true to the path of good moral judgment shouldn’t be that difficult. Open your eyes, weigh the consequences of your actions, don’t take no for an answer, and help those around you.
I’m glad to have known Verna, “Nana.” She would have liked Bobby Bones and his revelation that it is ok to judge other people by their actions and not just their intentions. How well they execute tells us without equivocation the true strength of their intent. Verna wasn’t fooled easily. Her strength, gumption, power and will to love would outshine anyone. We thank her for her truth and wisdom.
Javier Sánchez is the former mayor of the City of Española, NM, and the co-owner of La Cocina New Mexican Restaurant.