Continuing to Learn About Service

Last week I ran across a quote from entertainer, Andy Griffith, that has stuck with me ever since first reading it.  In his characteristically straightforward style Griffith summed up a delightfully compact worldview, in a few short words: "Well, do a good day's work and act like somebody."

That's a pretty simple and yet fundamentally difficult charge, but one that many of us (AmeriCorps Alums, Pumas, and in general people of good will) can easily embrace.  Hard work, service, integrity -- it's all there.

My wife Katie, a fellow AmeriCorps Alum, honorary Puma, wild land firefighter, and all around superhero articulates the benefits of a service mentality in a blog post which first appeared on the AmeriCorps Alums Blog this morning.  Like so many Katie talks about service as journey, not a destination.  Whether formal service or local volunteerism, whether serving family, friends, strangers, pets, or the environment, service matters.

Katie sums the common thread of journey up like this, "no matter where you started out when you joined AmeriCorps, you end up in a similar mindset after serving.  Service becomes a part of your life."

Check out Katie's post and join the conversation (whether your an Alum or not)...How do you serve?

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Change is Hard

Two months ago Katie and I, with the help of some amazing friends and family, relocated all of our worldly possessions from one side of the state to another.   New jobs and opportunities to be closer to family pried us away from SJC and our friends in Rensselaer.  A lot has changed since our move and times of change are often provide a good opportunity to reflect.  

Round 2 at SJC has been as every bit as educational and thought provoking as my first time in residence with the Pumas.  My friends, both old and new, renewed my faith in the good nature of people, and this time I was fortunate enough to share this with my wife…my best friend…chief advisor and hero.   

At SJC Katie learned to share my love of Puma-culture, she was able to be a part of a Kairos team, we made new friendships and strengthened old ones, and started to build our life together under the shadow of the twin towers.  Life was good. 

But change is a part of life.  

One of the things that I learned at SJC is that we must be true to ourselves and aware of what our minds and hearts tell us.  After four years on staff, it was time for me to move on again.  I was ready.  SJC was ready.  We just didn’t realize it until the change was happening.  When the opportunity to move to South Bend and serve Public Library opened up I knew that this was the right move for me.  I don’t know how I knew it, but some part of me knew that this was the right step. 

When I announced my plans to leave I was burdened with an odd mix of emotions ranging from excitement to guilt.  The guilt nagged at me.  Not because I really felt guilty, but because I was wondering why I felt guilt.  My departure was not wrong, but I felt compelled to play the part of the loyalist dragging my feet and grumbling about not really wanting to go.  In reality, I was simply conflicted.  Both feelings of excitement for new opportunities and regret at having to leave friends were both valid.

Do I miss my friends, Yes.  (every day)

Do I feel guilty for leaving, No. 

Change is hard.  Life is difficult, but does that make a new adventure less desirable? I don’t think so.  My last two months at the Library have been some of the most challenging and yet professionally rewarding that I have known.  It's been difficult, but I don't regret the move.  Paulo Coelho reminds us that our choices are “… real and true precisely because [they are] difficult.”

SJC is above all things, a school.  No school wants it’s students to remain stagnant.   The goal is to spend time in study and then move into a new role or level of awareness.  We celebrate that transition each Spring when students go forth and commence life. 

So I guess this was my second commencement from SJC. 

And it was another wild ride.

Secrets of the Puma Family

Working at one’s alma mater can sometimes be a challenge. The dual role as alumnus and employee is not always comfortable as the rose colored glasses often worn by alumni are tarnished by day to day drama that seems to be present in any workplace.

This weekend an unplanned reunion of the MOB at the 11:00 a.m. Mass in the College Chapel offered a gentle reminder to those present of the value of the Puma family. Just as the liturgical season of Advent calls us to pause and reflect upon the blessings of the past year and the gift of Christ’s birth, so too is it time to celebrate the Puma family.

No matter how ridiculous my student loan payments seem; no matter how many hours I spend working on Phonathon; no matter how frustrated students are with the quality of cafeteria food, at the end of the day we are all in this together. Whether alumni, faculty, current students, staff, coaches, sports fans, community members, or friends – we all have fond memories of SJC and the friendships made here.

Perfect harmony doesn’t exist in any family on Earth. But many families find ways to love and support one another all the same. Some might even go so far as to argue that the true measure of a strong family is the ability to celebrate each other despite the shortcomings. We do that at SJC.

Bennett Hall was old, musty, and lacked air conditioning – but it was our home. The equipment in our classrooms wasn’t always the most cutting edge—but we were instructed by professors, many of whom we call our friends. As staff we accept that some years we will go without raises—but experience true pride when our students (yes even if we don’t teach they are our students) graduate and become independent, productive, thoughtful members of society.

That’s the secret to the Puma family. That’s the gift of our founders, the Missionaries of the Precious Blood. We stick together, not because we all see eye to eye, but because we are bound by our shared experiences and use those experiences to celebrate our differences.

Up on the roof...

Last Saturday Katie and I joined members of the Men of Bennett (MOB) in a good old fashioned Amish-style roofing party. Yep, the MOB exercised our ability to not only destroy, but also to create as we helped the Millers re-roof their house.

The day started a bit shaky with an early morning shower and some concern for working on a wet roof.

But things dried up and we got to work stripping the old roof down the decking and replacing damaged boards with new. Then it was back to work tar-papering and shingling.

While it was hard work, we did have a lot of fun. Richard even got in a little afternoon yoga, as seen here executing what I’m told is called “Downward Facing Dog.” Smith just calls it “Indy Style.” But the work went quickly and we had some great food thanks to Steph and her dad, Steve. Jason’s dad, Don, was our fearless leader and provided much needed direction and advice throughout the whole process.

Beyond the sense of accomplishment one feels after a project starts to take shape, this weekend left me feeling a great sense of wholeness. I was reminded that neighbors, friends, and community are not just words used to identify people—they are concepts with real world incarnations.

We are often inundated by social scientists and political pundits that would have us believe that the world is spinning out of control and that no one looks out for each other any more. I disagree, and this weekend proved that communities can exist in more tangible ways than facebook groups and fantasy football leagues. I am energized by this and look forward to our next major project.

I was tired, Kirk was confused, Nate was thirsty, and only Katie new what to do.

College is Real Life...with training wheels

It's that time of year again when the students pack their cars and head off into the world. Some leave our corn-husked halls as graduates who will only come back for visits at Homecoming and Little 500. Some will leave and due to a variety of circumstances will not be able to return. Some, however, will return in the Fall to pick up right where the left off.

As Pumas leave campus I reflect on my own college experience. At the time I was so ready to get out into "the real world." We all were, and we talked about it all the time. It was a slippery slope and if not careful college can become, in essence, a four year conversation about what you're going to do next. The danger here is that you focus so much on the future that you forget to enjoy the past.

When we had these discussions about "the real world" my friend used to get really frustrated. "College is the real world," he argued. At first I just thought he was being ridiculous, but the more I thought about it the more it made sense. In many respects college is like the larger world -- only in smaller format. My adaptation to Angelo's thoery is that, "College is real life...but with training wheels." This is true at least at places like SJC where students are allowed to be adults, make their own decisions, and make thier own mistakes -- but with the safety net of having people around who care about them and will help when needed.

This is part of what makes college great.

The sad reality is that so many don't fully realize or utilize the gift of a safety net until they are out in the workforce and become independent. Then it's too late. Employeers are not as forgiving as professors when deadlines are missed, and landlords aren't as patient with angry parents when "Jonny's lost paperwork" means a housing application isn't filed on time. Extended adolecense is creeping from a cynical thoery into a commonly accepted reality and rooting itself to the psyche of American families.

But in college the safety net exists -- so that students can learn, make mistakes, have some successes, and ultimatly grow. I loved college, it was some of the best 4 years of my life. But by the time graduation rolled around I was ready to walk the tight rope without a net.

In tribute to the simple joys of college life and community living I present the following poem written originaly in 2000 or 2001 as part of a Creative Writing Poetry class I took under the direction of Dr. Bill Mottolesse. The poem was inspired by William Carlos William's piece This is just to say. Enjoy.

Note to a College Roommate

I have eaten
the pizza
that was in
the fridge

which you were
probably saving
for a drunk
snack

Damn,
it was delicious
perfect
and cold.

Inspired by William Carlos Williams’ “This is Just to Say”

M.O.B. 4 Life

Two weeks ago campus turned upside down for two days as we celebrated the annual Little 500 Go-Kart Race. Over the years I’ve been hit or miss interested in Little 5. I’m not a huge racing fan and grew out of the “need” to drink for three days straight that the event represented during my college days.

This year, however, the MOB descended on campus in great numbers to offer our support of Car #5 – Green Lightening Racing. In addition to the driver being the younger brother of our two buddies Green Lightening Racing is also the unofficial Bennett Car. It was good to see so many MOB back for the event and to catch up with everyone, but there was more at work than a reunion of old friends.

As my buddy Todd mentioned in his post Car #5 the convergence of the new and the old MOB was a monumental event and illustrated the certainty that the spirit of SJC is alive and kicking. As the MOB alumni returned and shared their stories, we interacted with current MOB and heard some of their stories. In this age of individualism and independence there is still a need for people to gather and support one another – and that is very much a part of the MOB experience.

In fact, I’ll let you in on a little secret about what makes the MOB special. It isn’t about where you physically lived on campus, what you studied, or where you partied. The central tenant of the MOB worldview is loyalty and friendship. It’s about belonging to something bigger than yourself and having a group of people who looked out for one another – that’s it – loyalty and friendship.

Once upon a time at Saint Joe these communities existed in every dorm on campus (and on college and university campuses across the world) – Bennett, Noll, Merlini, Gallagher, and even Siefert. Now the reality is that times, as the saying goes, have changed and the overt communities have seemingly dissolved. But I think if you look hard enough you will realize that the spirit of unity just might still be present at SJC. The dorm based communities may no longer exist, but there are new affinity groups to which people belong with similar fervor. This gives me hope.

For critics of this millennial generation to quickly write them off as self-centered and disloyal would be a mistake. The current college students have what it takes to bring back tight-knit communities, now it’s just a matter of doing it.

Good luck to the MOB: The Next Generation.