January 01, 2015

Every day someone is depending on us

I recently underwent a ginormous closet purge.

I have been known to hold onto anything and everything, and among my favorite things to hoard are newspaper clippings.

That's because when I would find something that I thought possessed even a modicum of wisdom, I always knew that there would come a time when I'd need to read those words again...

Here's a clipping I found from the Detroit Free Press; the date of publication is unknown, but  I can tell you that it's so old that the clipping is now a golden brown.

Read the piece below, by then-columnist and former Detroit news anchor Mort Crim.

And then we'll talk:

Somebody today is depending upon you. Think about that. Then think about the people you depend upon.

Some people say our society is built upon law, but I say dependability is the real glue that holds everything together. Without that, society would collapse.

Recently, a plane trying to land in Scotland was forced to circle in a holding pattern for half an hour because the air traffic controller was at lunch. Scotland's rules say a controller can't work more than two hours without a break, so she took one.

And early last summer, a driverless train in Argentina rushed out of control through six stations before a guard managed to bring it to an emergency stop. The driver had stepped off a few miles back to check a faulty door system. The guard, not knowing the driver was gone, closed the doors and the automatic train took off.

It was only as the train came within a few feet of the last station on the line that a guard finally got the thing stopped.

Today's Thought: Most of us don't control airplanes or trains, but we're all responsible for something. And though we can run away from our task, we can't escape our duty.

What do you take from that?

I took this: No job is too big, and no job is too small.

And, yeah, every job matters.

But the person behind the job matters more.

Me.

You.

The receptionist at your doctor's office.

The guy who's responsible for maintaining the football field your kid's team plays on.

The intern who turns the teleprompter for your favorite evening newscaster.

The person working the drive-thru window at Taco Bell.

Remind someone of this whenever he or she uses the word just as an adverb. 

As in, She's just part-time.

Or He's just a mechanic.

Or She's just a dispatcher.

Or She's just a cashier.

Or He's just a dad.

Or, my perennial favorite, She's just a mom.

On any given day at any given time, we could be the person who makes the automatic train take off.

And for that reason alone, we're all important.

4 comments:

  1. Not a truer word spoken. As a comptroller of a multi million dollar dealership I once cleaned the mens bathrooms. To prove to all of my employees that no one is to small and no job is beneath them. If I was willing to do it, then everyone should be.... I never ask anyone to do something that I was not willing to do myself. Well said.

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    1. Oh. My. God, Ray...yes. YES.

      "I never ask anyone to do something that I was not willing to do myself."

      Yes, yes, yes.

      Nothing should be beneath anyone -- particularly if *all* parties involved share the common goal of seeing something prosper and succeed.

      What a wonderful comment.

      Thanks for sharing, and Happy New Year.

      xo

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  2. I really love this one. (And the story above. Holy jeeze that's dedication and leadership.) You never know who is going to know who or what that person does or how they might just end up playing some sort of pivotal role in life. Such a great reminder.

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    1. "You never know who is going to know who..."

      See, that's a big one. You just never know. And, no, this shouldn't be the sole motivator with regard to how we treat others, of course. But it should make us all mindful. That whole six degrees of separation type thing...

      Thank you for the compliment. <3

      xo

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