Nobility in the Modern Age

The thoughts that I read in the story on nurse Frances Slanger (“Noble Words From Another War,” by Bob Welch, Oct. 17) were so unusual, it felt as if I were reading a foreign language. It seems as if we’re so afraid of being accused of hypocrisy that nobility is not even a goal. Yet we embrace the “sordid, selfish, shameful business that makes up most of our petty lives.”

Yes, I have to deal with ugly, repugnant business from time to time, but I’m grateful for the reminder that doing so also can be a privilege. Trash is a part of life, but not all of it. Nobility does still exist.

Rhoda Tuit

Santa Monica