My three-hour drive from
Philadelphia, PA to Washington, D.C. gave me ample time to appreciate several
things about my fellowship. I crossed into two more states today (Delaware and
Maryland) and one Federal district (The District of Columbia!). The east coast,
from a Chicagoan’s point of view, is jam packed with different state. Each
state has its own feel, its own geography, and it’s own pace. Granted, my
fellowship involves getting quick glimpses of my destinations, but there’s much
to be divined when you drive from place, to place, to place…
I
left Philadelphia thinking about the political struggles faced in that
important city. I thought of the painstaking decision-making that taxed the
minds of leaders and everyday people. In our instant gratification world, I
wonder how we would have felt living life in a social slow motion…where some
days the news is good (Independence declared!) and some days the news is bad
(the early years of the American Revolution!). The founding fathers risked
everything, their treasonous acts meant the price of failure would have been
paid with their heads.
Benjamin
Franklin comes to mind as his contribution to the early American government represents
an important aspect of perseverance. Upon the declaration of independence,
Franklin was dispatched as a diplomat to France. While the leaders and
citizens were back in the colonies trying to figure out the next move, Franklin
was out pounding the pavement pitching a high-level sales pitch to woo France,
and other countries, to lend their support to the independence movement.
Perseverance…it must have taken an incredible amount of perseverance to see his
job through. If Franklin failed, support from other countries would have waned,
and the drive for Independence would have been a spectacular failure.
Had Benjamin Franklin failed, who
would want to be the one to tell THAT part of the story to General George
Washington? Washington, at one point, was encamped in the hills outside of
Philadelphia at Valley Force for the long, soul-searching winter of 1777-1778. Again,
perseverance plays a critical role in this part of the story. Washington was
grooming his troops to be an effective fighting force against the British and
he had to believe that his goals were obtainable. Washington’s goals relied on
other founding fathers reaching their goals to shift the entire revolutionary
machine into gear to achieve sustainable forward progress.Washington's perseverance paid off...
From the 2012 perspective, we know
how the story ends…wave your flags, sing your songs, and love your 4th
of July celebrations. What thoughts were crossing the minds of Washington,
Revere, Jefferson, and Franklin as they put their heads on a their pillows
every night? Did they KNOW they were destined for greatness, did they HOPE they
were destined for greatness, or did they each secretly fear failure (or accept
failure?) thinking it would be better to try and fail rather than never have
tried at all…
I admire these men for the courage
they displayed in the uncertain times. Where did they get the fortitude
necessary to wake up and move forward day after day? Does that spirit still
exist today? How do we mine that spirit in ourselves? How do we cultivate that spirit in our students and our children?
I’d like to tell you about one more
story of Philadelphia Perseverance. Aside from the history bonanza to be found
in Philly, another important component of my stop in Philadelphia centered
around the fact that my family and I would be staying with my Uncle Al.
Chicago-Philadelphia, time and life don’t always allow individuals to have the
day-to-day connections you’d like to have with your family members. However, Uncle
Al and I have grown closer as the years have grown on us. Some of my earliest
childhood memories have Uncle Al right in the middle of the fun. As I’ve grown,
I’ve grown to realize that he’s always been a part of my life, and my own
family’s life. He’s a wonderful uncle.
So why does Uncle Al fit into my reflection I’ve shared with you today? The answer is very simple…He’s persevered.
Perseverance plays an important part in any era of human history on the
sociological level…groups face challenges, groups fail or groups succeed, the stories
are written, and they’re what teachers like me talk about in classrooms. What’s
easy to overlook is what happens to individuals…
Uncle Al has had to do the
unthinkable, he had to bury his son sixteen years ago and he had to bury his
wife a year ago this September. Honestly, those events broke part of me and I’m
just the cousin and the nephew. Al was the father and the husband and he faced
one of most challenging aspects of the human condition: Death. He faced the
death of people he loved the most and he did so with dignity, pride, and love,
just like I’d imagine any of us would hope to do in such circumstances.
What’s remarkable about Al’s story
are the moments, days, weeks, months, and years after the loss. He’s had to carry
on to live his life, simultaneously as the same man and as a changed man. In
the passage of time, Al’s always persevered, loved and grown, woken up each day
to face his new realities, and done so making the best of his situation. He’s
done more than live, he’s persevered. He’s done this by not only honoring his
past, but by also being very much alive in the present, and he casts an
optimistic eye toward the future.
History is full of figures who are
noteworthy for many reason. My fellowship focuses on some of the founding
fathers of our country, and each man deserves the academic accolades that
historians heap upon them since their days of glory. As I’ve discovered in my
fellowship, the founding fathers’ didn’t have it easy and they had to persevere
in dangerous times. However, I think it’s important to realize that the heroes
of our own lives are the ones who persevere within the context of the joys and
sorrows of everyday life.
To that end, perhaps the greatest
people we’ll ever learn from are the ones we’ll never read about in some
textbook. May the same be true for you as it has been for me.
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