TWITA #2

The second installment in the "That's what I'm talking about" series is focused on a friend of mine who is truly inspirational.  Actually, both he and his wife inspire me to be a better person, and to appreciate all of the varied blessings (and challenges) I face daily.

Let me go back to the beginning.

I met Joel and Sheryl in church, a number of years ago.  As a musician, I quickly plugged into the choir, where Joel was instrumental (pun intended) in making the group shine.  He sang tenor (wonderful sense of pitch) and also accompanied the choir on piano at various points.  He had an incredible ability to improvise for the offertory and communion, and I truly enjoyed what he presented musically.

Unfortunately, in 2002, Joel was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor.  I'll let Sheryl tell this part of the story:

In October of 2002, Joel was diagnosed with a malignant, inoperable brain tumor on the left side of his brain near the motor control and speech areas of his brain, and given 9-12 months to live. Shortly after the biopsy, he developed a staph infection at the surgery site. The infection put him back in the hospital (an hour away from our house) for a month and resulted in three more brain surgeries, the final one also resulting in the removal of a portion of his cranium. We nearly lost him several times.

Since then, he has had blood clots in both legs, siezures, radiation, several rounds of chemo, pneumonia, shingles, more chemo, and in 2007, a horrible fall. The seizures left his right side very weak and rendered his right arm and hand useless; he resembles a stroke victim. 

When he fell, he hit his head on a cement floor and was life-flighted to the hospital with substantial bleeding in his brain. We nearly lost him again. We were told that he would probably never walk again, and that his abilities would be severely diminished. He spent a month in the hospital and inpatient rehab units. He walked out of that unit using a cane.

Through all of this, Joel has assured me that everything would be okay. Today, he can barely speak, but he communicates very well. When asked how he is, his answer is always a smile and, "I'm fine". He has accompanied both of our sons on the piano, using only his left hand. If I hadn't been watching, I never would have guessed he was using one hand. He is the one who points out the rainbows when all the rest of us can see is the rain.

I witnessed Joel's physical decline first hand.  I saw him go from an incredibly gifted musician who had some tingling in his hand, to an individual who (as Sheryl puts it) resembles a severe stroke victim.

I was really sad.  Sad, and angry.  I couldn't understand how a wonderful person like this could be stricken in this way.

What Sheryl doesn't say in her Facebook note above, is that after his diagnosis and he began to have difficulty with motor coordination and speech, he volunteered his time at the elementary school down the road (literally) from his house.  He continued volunteering until his serious fall in 2007, proving to me that when life is challenging, the strong rise to the challenge.

The thing is, Sheryl is just as inspiring to me.  She would say (and has, trust me) that you just have to do what is necessary to continue on.  I get that, and I know that if faced with a similar situation, I would do whatever is necessary to make things work for my family.

However, she has not let any of this seeming tragedy affect her contribution to the community of which she is part.  She helps out with the marching band (after planting Joel in a seat in the stands), she is active (an officer, no less) in the music boosters, and can always be found when something needs to be done.

I have heard others, in similar situations, express anger at God for allowing this to happen.

Not Joel and Sheryl.  They realize that every day is a gift, so why waste time being angry all the time.

Thank you Joel and Sheryl for being an inspiration to me!

That's What I'm Talking About (TWITA) #1

In addition to my own rants and raves, I would like to occasionally present stories of people who are actually doing something to make the world a better place.

I have a whole series I need to share with you, including a surprise volunteer and a twice-inspiring friend, but I would like to start with a story of a family that I absolutely love.

This is the story of a mom (home business, home schooler, great wit), a dad (an officer in the military and an all around great guy - seriously, if you don't like him after meeting him, I probably don't want to hang out with you), and three kids.

This family decided to take the words of Jesus seriously; they've adopted a young man from halfway around the globe.

Go here and read, and then come back for follow up thoughts.

I'll wait.





Good?

Did you get the part at the end, where we were asked as readers what we thought our impact would be if the "body of Christ functioned as it was intended" to function?

Missy also talks about how not everyone needs to adopt a child, however, we can all play a role.

That's what I'm talking about.

If all of us picked up the rope and pulled, we could move the world.  It takes SO much to do what these people have done (money, time, patience, understanding, compassion, love, support, etc.), and organizations such as the one described in the post are wonderful vehicle for organizing efforts to help.

Find your path to helping others.

#5 - Intellectual Elites?

Having been on a number of search committees, as well as having actually hired people, I am a firm believer in bringing in the best person for the job. Part of this process is matching the skills, talents, and knowledge of the individuals applying with the position available.

This is a good thing, right?

When interviewing surgical residents, Hospitals want to insure that not only do the prospective surgeons have the necessary education and training, but they also have extensive experience in order to be successful in the operating room at the hospital.

How about CEO of a large company? Having an MBA and expert knowledge of business processes and systems help keep companies streamlined and profitable for their investors.

Similarly, we expect that the teachers that work with our children have a high quality education and experience with different teaching techniques that will allow them to connect with all the children that they teach, moving them forward academically.

What do these groups (and many, many more) have in common?

They are all elite in some way.

But what does elite really mean?

From Merriam-Webster.com:

Definition of ELITE

1 a singular or plural in construction : the choice part : cream
b singular or plural in construction : the best of a class
c singular or plural in construction : the socially superior part of society
d : a group of persons who by virtue of position or education exercise much power or influence
e : a member of such an elite —usually used in plural 

For our purposes here, d is the definition that addresses the issue under discussion (although, I'll get to e as well).

Many people strive for YEARS to become elite in their craft.  When kids are playing football in the backyard, do they dream about riding the bench, or being the star quarterback?  When one of those same kids shows promise, what do we do?  We throw resources and opportunities at that child (hopefully) and they continue on the path to developing into a superstar, because on Sunday afternoons, you want to see the best pitted against the best, right?

These examples (plus many more I could quickly conjure up: the master luthier, the phenomenal chef, the technological whiz kid, etc.) speak to the fact that, as a nation, we admire those who excel in their field.

Except in one area.

Politics.

There is a current trend (although, it has certainly come up before) against intellectuals in politics that I simply cannot wrap my head around.

Again, I refer you back to the beginning of this post where I discussed hiring the best person for the job.  Shouldn't we want to have smart people running this country?  That seems too much like common sense to me, so I'm sure I'm missing something along the way.

Before I go any further, I want to assure you that I am not advocating for some intellectual elitist oligarchy or anything like that -  I simply want to KNOW that my elected official is cognitively equipped to handle the challenges inherent in running a country of this size.

Why my concern?

Primarily, I'm hearing phrases like "the intellectual elite" or "so-called experts" from one side of the aisle, and, as an academician, I find it troubling.  Trust me, I don't know everything there is to know about everything, but I do know some things.  If Congress were to convene a task force focused on increasing the social presence of online faculty, I feel that I could speak to that issue with some authority.

It is easy to be folksy and speak in generalities when running for office, isn't it?  Do you want to elect a president that would be "fun to have a beer with" or do you want to hire someone who will be the most effective in governing the nation?

Speaking of language, do you hear a lot of specifics from either side during a campaign?

Nope.

You hear "cut spending" but not what to cut.  

Don't you want the people who represent your legislative (and executive) interests to be open and honest with you about the way your government works?  A phrase that is often used in my house is "tough choices" - referring to the decisions that must be made to stick to the budget or get rid of clutter, generally.

Now, some readers may think that I'm saying you have to have advanced degrees to run for office in this country - that's not what I'm saying at all.

I'm simply stating that running for office on a platform of bashing those who DO have the curiosity to keep growing intellectually is not productive in creating a better country than we have today.