It is the season
of both ritual and renewal. While our family is not especially observant when
it comes to religion we do adhere to ritual:
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Every
Sunday we read aloud and discuss the NY Times wedding of the week
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Each
Thanksgiving Day we watch Planes, Trains and Automobiles with John Candy and
Steve Martin
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At
every meal Nate and my niece Sofie try to sneak some ketchup onto whatever I am
eating
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Every
December we take Nate to New York for two days of Rockefeller Center, FAO
Swartz, art museums, Share Our Strength restaurants, etc.
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Every
December 28 we eat dinner at Rialto on the anniversary of our wedding reception
there and every December 29 we drive to Maine for three quiet, cold days at the
beach to see in the new year.
There is comfort
in ritual. But to ensure against too much comfort, one of my personal
rituals on the cusp of each new year is to re-read a speech that John Gardner
delivered to McKinsey and Co in Phoenix, Arizona in November of 1990.
Gardner was Secretary of Health Education and Welfare under President Lyndon
Johnson, and later a co-founder of Independent Sector as well as Common Cause.
He wrote several books on leadership and human potential.
Gardner’s speaks
about the need to push oneself beyond the familiar, beyond conventional
thinking, and to instead constantly renew. A few favorite excepts follow
below:
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“Everyone
wants to be interesting -- but the vitalizing thing is to be interested. Keep a
sense of curiosity. Discover new things. Care. Risk failure. Reach out.”
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“Meaning
is not something you stumble across, like the answer to a riddle or the prize
in a treasure hunt…You have to build meaning into your life, and you build it
through your commitments -- whether to your religion, to an ethical order as
you conceive it, to your life's work, to loved ones, to your fellow humans.
Your identity is what you've committed yourself to.”
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“There
are men and women who make the world better just by being the kind of people
they are --and that too is a kind of commitment. They have the gift of kindness
or courage or loyalty or integrity. It matters very little whether they're
behind the wheel of a truck or running a country store or bringing up a
family.”
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“Someone
defined horse sense as the good judgment horses have that prevents them from
betting on people. But we have to bet on people -- and I place my bets more
often on high motivation than on any other quality except judgment. There is no
perfection of techniques that will substitute for the lift of spirit and
heightened performance that comes from strong motivation. The world is moved by
highly motivated people, by enthusiasts, by men and women who want something
very much or believe very much.”
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“We
… must not suppose that the path will be easy, it's tough. Life is painful, and
rain falls on the just, and Mr. Churchill was not being a pessimist when he
said "I have nothing to offer, but blood, toil, tears and sweat." He
had a great deal more to offer, but as a good leader he was saying it wasn't
going to be easy, and he was also saying something that all great leaders say
constantly -- that failure is simply a reason to strengthen resolve.”
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“Nothing
is ever finally safe. Every important battle is fought and re-fought. We need
to develop a resilient, indomitable morale that enables us to face those
realities and still strive with every ounce of energy to prevail. You may
wonder if such a struggle -- endless and of uncertain outcome -- isn't more
than humans can bear. But all of history suggests that the human spirit is well
fitted to cope with just that kind of world.”
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“I
can tell you that for renewal, a tough-minded optimism is best. The future is
not shaped by people who don't really believe in the future. Men and women of
vitality have always been prepared to bet their futures, even their lives, on
ventures of unknown outcome. If they had all looked before they leaped, we
would still be crouched in caves sketching animal pictures on the wall.”
I find much in
here that resonates personally and much that applies to our No Kid Hungry
campaign. You will find the entire speech @ http://www.pbs.org/johngardner/sections/writings_speech_1.html
There is obvious paradox in the idea of ritual and renewal, just as there is in
the fact that I can’t wait for the holiday break, but also can’t wait to get
started again in 2014. We have an amazing new year ahead of us. Thanks
again for the support and generosity that got us here. My best to you and your family
for the holidays.
