See You At The Finish!
The words of a hymn from my childhood
contain a thought which made a strong impression upon me. The words have a power
upon my mind to this
day.
Those words of power, those words of strength, went something like this: Our talents may be few, these may be small, but unto Him is due our best, our all.
I suppose that these words also guided my teaching. Within every class of students throughout those years, I found a few who had superior skills, a lot of average students, and a few who struggled to complete assigned tasks.
Regardless of their abilities, regardless of the talents that they came into the classroom with, I tried to impart that they had to utilize their skills, their talents in the very best way afforded to them.
I never failed to be surprised by the average and below average students. So often it was in these groups that the will, the determination to succeed was strongest. Here you would see the child working the hardest to succeed and achieving a deserved success.
The disappointment would more likely exist with the student who came into the learning environment with the greatest gifts, the greatest talents. So many times it was this student who did only what was required, They still made the "A" grade, but the grade didn't mean a great deal. Oh, I guess it did to Mom and Dad, as it certainly gave the appearance that Johnny or Jane was doing OK in class. But I could usually sense that it didn't mean that much to the child. You can't fool yourself; you know when you aren't giving of your best.
I suppose you might ask why I would be disappointed in a student who earned an "A" grade? My disappointment came from the fact that I knew the student was cheating himself out of the joy, the inner satisfaction which comes only when we give of our best.
Life demands that each of us. I believe it is the only choice we really have.
Some years ago I had the desire to run in the Kansas City marathon. Now, since I run at about the speed of a turtle, I realized that this was probably a silly thing for me to consider. But the temptation to run a marathon just wouldn't go away. Early in the spring my Runners' World magazine arrived and the issue contained an article on training for a marathon. The author had designed a twelve week training program. He guaranteed that if you followed the training schedule exactly as he laid it out, you would be able to finish the race.
After completing the article, I checked the calendar and saw that if I began training soon after summer vacation began, I would have exactly twelve weeks before the KC Marathon. The schedule called for "long training runs" to take place on Saturdays and Sundays. Diana and Parrish rode on their bikes on those days with energy bars and water.
We had good weather eery weekend and I completed the training in the manner as it was laid out in the article. According to my marathon race number I was among the early registrants. It was exciting to receive it in the mail. It was also somewhat frightening, because it symbolized my commitment to the race.
We had to leave home at 4:30 AM the morning of the marathon in order to arrive in time to check in and get warmed up. It was a gloriously beautiful October morning. The temperature at the start of the race was in the low 40s--perfect. I was ready for the race; I had given my best in my training and preparation. Though my running talents were small, I had given my all.
The race began with the playing of the National Anthem and the release of hundreds of balloons. What an experience. After about 15 miles, I understood why so many people drop out. It gets a little tiring, just running and running. It seems as though there is no finish line.
At the turn around, when you know you are now headed back in, there was a refreshing of the mind. Then, without about one mile left in the 26+ mile event, a car pulled up next to me. I imagine I looked exhausted. The men asked me if I was all right. I said I was. They asked me if I wanted a lift back to the finish line. I said no. As they drove on one of them hollered, "See you at the finish!"
A shudder flowed across my body. "See you at the finish!" I knew I could finish the race.
As I turned into Swope Park with a police car escort, I could hear the music from the loud speakers and then I saw a crowd of people at the stand, Nearing the line a boy of about ten stepped forward. As I crossed the line he placed around my neck a blue ribbon with a giant medal hanging from it. I was the final finisher of the marathon. There is an award for the final person who completes the race. No one comes in last.
Though our talents may be few and these may be small, we will be rewarded in life if we give our best, our all.
Those words of power, those words of strength, went something like this: Our talents may be few, these may be small, but unto Him is due our best, our all.
I suppose that these words also guided my teaching. Within every class of students throughout those years, I found a few who had superior skills, a lot of average students, and a few who struggled to complete assigned tasks.
Regardless of their abilities, regardless of the talents that they came into the classroom with, I tried to impart that they had to utilize their skills, their talents in the very best way afforded to them.
I never failed to be surprised by the average and below average students. So often it was in these groups that the will, the determination to succeed was strongest. Here you would see the child working the hardest to succeed and achieving a deserved success.
The disappointment would more likely exist with the student who came into the learning environment with the greatest gifts, the greatest talents. So many times it was this student who did only what was required, They still made the "A" grade, but the grade didn't mean a great deal. Oh, I guess it did to Mom and Dad, as it certainly gave the appearance that Johnny or Jane was doing OK in class. But I could usually sense that it didn't mean that much to the child. You can't fool yourself; you know when you aren't giving of your best.
I suppose you might ask why I would be disappointed in a student who earned an "A" grade? My disappointment came from the fact that I knew the student was cheating himself out of the joy, the inner satisfaction which comes only when we give of our best.
Life demands that each of us. I believe it is the only choice we really have.
Some years ago I had the desire to run in the Kansas City marathon. Now, since I run at about the speed of a turtle, I realized that this was probably a silly thing for me to consider. But the temptation to run a marathon just wouldn't go away. Early in the spring my Runners' World magazine arrived and the issue contained an article on training for a marathon. The author had designed a twelve week training program. He guaranteed that if you followed the training schedule exactly as he laid it out, you would be able to finish the race.
After completing the article, I checked the calendar and saw that if I began training soon after summer vacation began, I would have exactly twelve weeks before the KC Marathon. The schedule called for "long training runs" to take place on Saturdays and Sundays. Diana and Parrish rode on their bikes on those days with energy bars and water.
We had good weather eery weekend and I completed the training in the manner as it was laid out in the article. According to my marathon race number I was among the early registrants. It was exciting to receive it in the mail. It was also somewhat frightening, because it symbolized my commitment to the race.
We had to leave home at 4:30 AM the morning of the marathon in order to arrive in time to check in and get warmed up. It was a gloriously beautiful October morning. The temperature at the start of the race was in the low 40s--perfect. I was ready for the race; I had given my best in my training and preparation. Though my running talents were small, I had given my all.
The race began with the playing of the National Anthem and the release of hundreds of balloons. What an experience. After about 15 miles, I understood why so many people drop out. It gets a little tiring, just running and running. It seems as though there is no finish line.
At the turn around, when you know you are now headed back in, there was a refreshing of the mind. Then, without about one mile left in the 26+ mile event, a car pulled up next to me. I imagine I looked exhausted. The men asked me if I was all right. I said I was. They asked me if I wanted a lift back to the finish line. I said no. As they drove on one of them hollered, "See you at the finish!"
A shudder flowed across my body. "See you at the finish!" I knew I could finish the race.
As I turned into Swope Park with a police car escort, I could hear the music from the loud speakers and then I saw a crowd of people at the stand, Nearing the line a boy of about ten stepped forward. As I crossed the line he placed around my neck a blue ribbon with a giant medal hanging from it. I was the final finisher of the marathon. There is an award for the final person who completes the race. No one comes in last.
Though our talents may be few and these may be small, we will be rewarded in life if we give our best, our all.
(November. 1999)
Posted: Fri - August 6, 2004 at 07:28 AM
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In a museum most people spend less than twenty seconds looking at a work of art."
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Published On: Feb 03, 2006 11:02 PM
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Published On: Feb 03, 2006 11:02 PM