Fire in the Lighthouse

Dr. Delaney was our superintendent of our school district for the first twenty years of my career. His first name was Ray but everybody always called him Dr. Delaney. Dr. Delaney was a Machivelian prince who maintained discipline with fear. I don't know which was more terrifying about Dr. Delaney, his blazing intellect or his bushy unmanaged eyebrows. The rumor was that Dr. Delaney respected those who stood up to him. Very few did. I did once not to test him but rather because I knew I was right.  From that point forward we got along very well.

Towards the end of his reiny reign, Dr. Delaney became a very sick man which made individual meetings with him even more terrifying. His ability to fault find increased as his brain cancer worsened. He stayed in charge right up until his death.

He was committed to the district.

What's the difference between inviolvement and commission? The next time you have ham and eggs, remember this....the chicken was involved but the pig was committed.

For his replacement, the Board chose an out of towner named Dr. Robert McKanna. Aside from his somewhat ashen complexion, Mckanna was an attractive man with a magnetic personality. He insisted that we call him Bob.

Bob was a fan of kalliope music and merry-go rounds.

He was a positive thinker who ruled by connectivity and challenge.

At his first meeting with the entire faculty, he challenged us to develop a fire in the belly not only as a group but as individuals within the group. He declared our district to be a "light house district' a guiding light fueled by the collective fire within the bellys of the entire community as well as faculty, staff and students. He reminded us that a goal was a wish with a deadline. We set professional goals each year. Bob said he wanted us to set personal goals as well and with that he called Stan Palmer to the stage.

Bob told us that he had met Stan previously. Stan and Bob had got along well which was a good thing because everybody liked Stan. When Bob told Stan his philosophy about setting personal goals,Stan told Bob that he was determined to lose weight. Bob shared Stan's goal with all of us and stated that the more people that we shared our dreams with the more likely that they would come true. Since Stan had now shared his fire with everybody....his chances of fulfillment were very high.

Every step made in pursuit of every goal was another spark to the fire.

With enough sparks we could ignite a blaze that through our lighthouse  could change the community, thus the city, thus the state, thus the world. We all had that capacity.

Bob got quite the ovation.

Next, he brought out a unicycle. He said that he had never ridden one of them but admired folks that could. Bob said he would ride on of these at a future end of year meeting. A goal is not an overnight accomplishment, rather the end product of a successful process which encountered and overcame failure and discouragement. He reminded us that a realized goal should be readily demonstrable and evident. Celebration should follow. Stan would lose weight and alter his corporal shape or he wouldn't. Bob would be able to ride the unicycle or he wouldn't. 

We were alll motivated, bellys full of fire.

Fire was in the air.

Over the next two years, we all kept our eyes on Stan. It became obvious that he was losing weight. Everybody praised him and encouraged him. Stan's fire was lit for all to see.

Sparks in the air

During the last week of the school year, the super-intendent would speak to the staff at each school. H e would evaluate the school's performance with graphs and observations. He would call to the stage different people who had achieved their shared personal goals during the year. 

When he came to our school he brought several people to the stage including those who had reached the goal of retirement. Piped in kalliope music filled the auditorium. All of the soon to be retirees got a big hand. The biggest round of applause went to Stan whose slim figure bore little resemblance to the Stan of two years past.

Not everybody was on board with Bob's management style. Some folks thought that Bob was full of hot air.

Until Bob brought out his unicycle.

Before he got aboard, he announced that he had appleid for and had been chosen as Super-intendent of Chicago schools and that his would be his farewll appearance before leaving for Illinois. 

Not everyome was shocked. Some felt that Bob had used his experience with us as a resume padding and had never truly been committed.

Bob got on the unicycle.

Stan held the bike in place.

After a moment, Bob stepped down from the uni.

" I worked on riding this thing. Every moment that I could spare, I got onboard. I'm here to say that I couldn't do it."

Bob said goodbye and left the stage.

Stan remained holding the bike.

The kalliope music ended.

The fire dimmed.

To this day, people have very mixed opinions of Bob. Some say it would have been better for him to try to ride the thing just a little bit even if he fell and looked silly. 

In retrospect Bob's reputation in our district suffered. Undeniably, he was involved but his spark went out even before he got to Chicago.

The lighthouse, indomitable still stands.