“Often you are accomplishing much more than you can see at the moment…,” Martin Luther King Jr. once said. I have been in honors classes since they were offered to me in middle school, and it has always seemed like it was a bare minimum to be included in. Surely, you weren’t gawked at in the school hallways like you were the President of a country because you were in honors; you had to achieve something above the sea of those high-achieving students. Before submitting a piece of work, I tend to make sure that what I submit is the best possible version I could come up with. So when I earned a gold medal in the Scholastic Art and Writing awards for my personal memoir, I felt as though what I had learned in my English class had proved to be useful to me, but looking back it was also the discipline and dedication I had developed on finishing a task with effort and passion. The next day at school, my English teacher had my essay pinned up on the wall outside our classroom, and on the morning announcements my achievement was mentioned. As I walked to my classes many faces whom I have never seen came up to congratulate me, and I was flooded with pride and gratefulness. I had built my own discipline and moral values by striving to be the best possible “honors kid” and with that traditions would follow. These experiences showed me that honor is shaped by traditions and an individual’s personal values. At the same time, honor is reflected in recognition through awards or titles, which makes achievements visible to others.

Honor is most noticed when an accomplishment is formally acknowledged. At the global level, societies use awards like the Nobel Peace Prize, the Pulitzer, the Grammy’s, the Oscars, and Wimbledon trophies to recognize extraordinary achievements. At the school level, the pattern repeats with student scholarships and “honors” labels on schedules. Even smaller recognitions like an honorable mention in a school club or earning a spot on varsity for a school sport show classmates and adults that someone has met a high standard. Additionally, these various achievements also feed a cycle of motivation. Students often chase honorable prizes to impress relatives at family gatherings, strengthen college applications, or maintain feeling proud in a high-achieving environment. In this way, physical recognition shapes how honor is experienced at every level in a traditional aspect. 

However, awards and titles are only one side of honor, and usually do not leave a lasting impact for a long period of time. Truly, honor is developed through effort, integrity, and persistence. A student in a regular class who works hard may embody more honor than an unmotivated student sitting in an honors class. The label on a transcript does not directly correlate to being more motivated. Some teachers recognize this difference in standards, expecting honors students to handle advanced coursework not only because of intelligence but also because of the assumed maturity of the honors students. However, beyond academics, honor is more rooted in firefighters, police officers, and military officers who risk their safety to keep us safe, and freedom fighters throughout history who risked their lives for what is right all have an extreme honor that no physical award or certificate could encompass. These examples show that character built on discipline, good morals, and responsibility creates a deeper form of honor that lasts throughout generations.

With recognition and character comes responsibility. Holding an honorable title like being the captain of a school team or being the winner of a grammy award places a person under a brighter spotlight. Essentially, honor does not end with receiving an award for your work. The expectation to maintain those standards are higher now, and one dishonorable act can overshadow years of hard work. This illustrates how recognition can quickly change in the public opinion when honor is only based on outer signs of honor. This again highlights the difference between short-term and long-term honor, as short-term recognition with awards can fade quickly, but honor built on strong values and respected traditions lasts. The long-term recognition is the type of honor that everyone learns from and can be motivated to embody.

To conclude, Martin Luther King Jr.’s reminder that “you are accomplishing much more than you can see at the moment,” shows what honor becomes once people slowly forget about the accomplishment. Standing at the Board of Education meeting or hearing your name on the morning announcements feels like the real reward, but the habits that assisted this achievement are the real prize that you get to keep with you. That hidden growth is what separates temporary recognition from lasting honor. The values and traditions behind the achievements of great leaders continue shaping their choices, influencing others and building a legacy. In that sense, the real honor is not from being noticed once but by upholding traditional ways of recognition coupled with a growth in your personal morals.