The Bond of Words

Frank Scales

January 25, 2025

While walking from campus to the Subway after dark, I saw a fellow student frantically running back to school, screaming. Thinking something was seriously wrong, I followed. After catching up with him, he explained that he had promised to give a friend her charger back but had forgotten to. He was practically in tears.  

He explained that his words were his bond, and he never broke it. If it were me, I would have just shrugged it off and brought the charger to school the next day. This did not even enter his mind. His words were his bond, and that was IT.  

Whether it be personal commitments or promises to others, we often make promises we do not keep. It could be working out, waking up early, completing certain tasks, being somewhere at a certain time, paying off debts, and plenty more. Imagine if we stopped being casual about our promises and instead made keeping our word central to our identity. When I asked the man about this, he said, ‘Your word is your bond,’ stating it as an objective truth that is real for all of us. He added that you must lose everything to understand the importance of your words.  

Regarding his first point, I agree. Imagine a world where everyone always followed through on their word. World peace would be probable, economic crises would be diverted, our politicians would be trusted, our social safety net would be strong, and marriages would be secure. But would society be less fun? Would the part of life that makes things uncertain and friendships valuable, be lost? Maybe, that is just the devil on my shoulder talking.  

His second point, that you must lose everything to understand the importance of your word, is more complex. Philosophers like Friedrich Nietzsche have long said one has to go all the way to the root of evil, corruption, and darkness to see the light and be complete. The man did not speak in terms of philosophy. I cannot help but wonder if all parties are getting at a universal truth that is central to our existence.  

This is what I know, I have not experienced enough of life to understand the dire consequences of lying. Although, I have experienced enough to know that keeping your word is everything. When you lie you warp your reality in a way that makes you unable to attain the wisdom needed to make it to the other side when things get tough. You can judge a person – successful people will judge you based on whether you are on time for meetings, or if you make deadlines – which is based on whether you keep your word. This type of judgment is fair because if one keeps their promises in small matters, they will keep their word when the stakes are higher. Although, I have not experienced the full consequences of lying. The 
results of keeping your word include a clean conscience, healthy relationships, and professional success.  

For much of my teenage years, I believed I could outsmart everyone – I could have my cake and eat it too. Mistakenly, I thought it was possible to be respected while unserious and perform at a high level without practice, and that confidence meant covering up insecurity. I paid the price for this with time, our most precious asset. The time I could have spent building myself, from the ground level, into a force to be reckoned with was wasted while I acted like I was already a force to be reckoned with. 

I changed my vision – pulled the wool in front of my own eyes – and when it was time to make decisions about my future, whether that be passion, occupation, or college, I was blind and could not see a path, let alone choose one. Life has a way of getting even.  

Regardless of the past, those who keep fighting will find a path and those who seek wisdom will attain it. I found my path at the Community College of Philadelphia and wisdom in faith. 

I am not an expert, I am not particularly talented, and I have not made the most of past opportunities. But my vision is clear. I am hungry, I am tenacious, and I am a winner. And the hungry dog eats, the tenacious man overcomes the competition, and the winners always win.