There is this incredible book – a book I have shared with very few - those who I believe truly understand what it means to be an educator, to live the great leadership question: how do we make everything more personal? As I consider what it means to be “the new guy,” I borrow some from this work of art to share my thoughts~ Thank you Mr. Whyte.
“Oh Captain, my Captain” For Whitman this was a cry to Lincoln to be the stabilizing, organizing force the country so desperately needed at the time.
Don’t we all need a captain of sorts? Someone to rely on - someone who will take care of us without making it too obvious - someone to wake in the night and do what needs to be done? And when times are tough, someone to step to the front and take the blame when everything goes wrong – shielding his or her crew?
Whenever we attempt something difficult there is always a sense that we have to wake some giant slumbering inside ourselves, some greater force yet hidden from us. We look to be better by looking for a better version of ourselves~ I am looking.
I am the new guy, well “a” new guy. For some I imagine that I am now the Captain – but a captain cannot succeed alone. Each of us must find our own “Captaincy,” wake that giant and choose to say YES as loudly as we say no.
I understand that I have been selected to be a Captain – but not “the” Captain. I understand that I have a responsibility for the success of my crew – but I am not alone. I understand that I matter – but more importantly, they matter… Help them know that they matter~
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