We have many expressions to describe a person who is trustworthy and true – a rock, a brick, a Mensch. In a more analytical mood, we describe such a person as grounded or centered. I want to consider what it is to be grounded or centered, and then to explain what being grounded or centered has to do with being trustworthy and true.

My account begins with a quality generally regarded as distinctive of persons – namely, self-awareness. Of course, a brick or a rock isn't self-aware; but a person can be a brick or a rock in the figurative sense only through the utmost development of that which differentiates him as a person from bricks and rocks literally so called. If we want to identify the relevant differences, however, we do better to contrast a person with something that comes a bit closer to personhood – say, a cat.