The Aftermath or The Sky is Falling.

If I was watching all of this from some celestial place like Mount Olympus or heaven I would be most entertained. I would be able to see from that aerial view that it was the experience and knowledge that I gained that was most exquisite. All of the emotions felt during that journey were of no consequence in the end…

For the successful man, the goal of history is not to know a set of events and dates, but to get to know the men and women behind those events and dates and learn from their mistakes and triumphs…


I have been thinking…Again. I realize that this comes as no surprise to anyone who follows this blog but today I find myself wondering if my cousin’s warning about thinking too much was indeed a valid one. My current thought process is the result of a recent visit from the state of New York concerning my school’s status on the Schools under Registration Review list a.k.a. (S.U.R.R.). Anyone who works in the school system knows that this is not a good thing. I am still trying to process what happened here. The only thing that I can articulate is that it feels very quiet; kind of like ground zero after the planes hit. Some may think that this description is a little dramatic but I can only speak from the purest of emotions when I describe what occurred after the army of suits left the building.

On the week prior to the states’ arrival there was a feeling of tension in the air. It was as if everyone knew that there would be bad news…they were right. I have decided not to go into the particulars of what they reported because frankly it was too much to remember. But one thing I can recall is that from my vantage point in the back of our huge auditorium, I could not see the state representative. But from the tone of his voice as he flayed at the very culture of our school and its faculty, I pictured a man wagging his finger and shaming a room full of adults…It wasn’t pleasant. Another thing that I can remember is that during his tirade I could also visualize a little man in my head next to a chalk board. On this chalk board there was line drawn in the middle with boxes on either side. One side was for things that I was guilty of doing. The other of course was not guilty. Honestly, I cannot say how often he checked the guilty box but the fact remains that I was indeed responsible for some of the infractions that he mentioned. So what now? Honestly, I am not certain. But one thing that experience has taught me is that sitting around waiting for this thing to blow over is the worst thing that I could do.

I am curious how others feel about this. We are living in time in our country’s history when everyone’s usefulness is being tested. In this era of scarce resources every individual’s character will be evaluated. Misfits will be outed and everyone will have their opportunity to play judge or jury. But in the midst of all of this I have decided to burn a candle of optimism. I am hopeful that people will begin to talk to one another face to face instead of behind each other’s back. And I am also hopeful that love and honesty will prevail. Naïve? Maybe. But in spite of my naïveté I am certain that although this is probably not the most that we have ever needed each other in our history, it still does not mean that it is any less urgent. What has happened here in my little world is only a small example of what’s to come.