Manikin or Man

"Manliness consists not in bluff, bravado or loneliness. It consists in daring to do the right thing and facing the consequences whether it is in matters social, political or other. It consists in deeds not words."

Mahatma Gandhi

I'm working on unfolding my thoughts on manhood and general manliness for the next wee while so expect the blog posts to reflect that focus. My life offers me the opportunity to observe people pondering the deep things of life.  Questions regarding gender roles and how we understand and experience our place in society have become more difficult to answer and are becoming an ever greater conundrum for young people who have seen gender roles morph and their dedicated role models vanish into the mist of the growing individualistic isolationism of the generations.

What does it take to be manly? 

Manikins are inanimate objects that we use as prototype people. From a distance they can look like the ideal man, striking the right pose to attract our attention and our attraction to what they are selling. But once we get up close it is easy to discover that they lack the animation of the authentic article. So it is with many males in our society. They strike a pose that demands attention and provokes attraction but get too close and you discover they lack the inner spark of manly animation that offers others the real deal when seeking the gender called man. Like their Manikin look-a-likes they tend to favor style over substance. They also tend to be rigid, making them dependent on someone else to determine their next pose. They are usually hollow shells, hard on the outside and yet awfully empty on the inside. They come in a only a few limited types so everything that makes one distinct is just posturing to pretend diversity. Lastly Manikins tend to be incredibly unstable. One hard bump and you could send one crashing into the nearest display case in Massey's aisle. 

So what does the warmblooded male have that these cold forms of pseudo-masculinity lack? 

1. Masculinity is about Credibility which is all about substance over style. It is what you do that actually matters not what you claim to be, leaving a belief that one's credibility is to be expressed actively. 
2. Masculinity is about Responsibility which means being prepared. It produces an attitude that one's responsibility is to be expressed proactively. 
3. Masculinity is about Flexibility which is about the courage to accept the unexpected twists and turns life throws in your path. Plans never survive contact with reality and men accept this and realize their flexibility is to be expressed reactively. 
4. Masculinity is about Sensibility which is the mixing of a man's passion and compassion. The heart of a man is moved by Beauty, by Love, by the Majestic in Nations, Notions, and Natures. 
5. Masculinity is about Stability, which is the tests we face in life that show our capacity to remain standing upon our convictions even when the Fates knock us on our ass. 

Boys talk a lot about being Manly, with little expectation of actually doing "manly" things. They boast about what they'd do "if and when" yet never prepare for those eventualities. They dig their heels in when things don't go as they expect and pitch a fit of peek. They boorishly overlook the deeper things of life by shallowly undervaluing Pricelessness' true worth. Then finally, and perhaps most reprehensibly, when their rare stands of conviction cost more than they expected, they fold, retreating to their mother's apron strings, decrying the injustices of this cruel world! 

You can spot a man in the constant act of doing; spot him "manning up" in preparation, spot him flow past as he reacts to the winds of change, spot him glowing enraptured in Beauty's glorious embrace, and finally spot him picking himself up, standing tall as he pays the butcher's bill for his own choices. 

 Men.... are rare indeed in this sad world. 

Perhaps it is time for some of us males to man up? 

One last thought.. real men tend to look a lot like real women. Credible, Responsible, Flexible, Sensible, and Stable. That's why men marry women and girls like boys. Matches made in heaven until someone has to grow up!