I met up with an old friend last week for coffee (actually, he’s not that old; it’s our friendship that’s old), and we talked about someone we both knew from our school days who is very successful and a bit of a big shot (as it were).
And I said to my friend,
“But you’re successful too!”
Taken aback for a moment, my friend paused before responding that although I may think that (I do), it is not important to him whether he is seen as successful or not. What’s important to him is that he is seen as a kind, good and caring person.
Of course, I immediately agreed with him, and so we moved on to much more pressing topics (such as debating whether “Breaking” should be included as an Olympic sport and Olympic medals per capita stats). Important things!
Later, as I contemplated some of those conversations about success and gold medals, I was reminded of one of my favourite quotes from Parker Palmer:
“We need a coat with two pockets. In one pocket there is dust, and in the other pocket there is gold. We need a coat with two pockets to remind us who we are.”
It’s a powerful metaphor.
One of the things I have noticed as I have listened to Olympians explain their success over the last few weeks is that none of them have attributed their success to anything other than luck, hard work, and the support of others. They all have two pockets.
Indeed, the metaphor also speaks directly to our purpose as educators, where the pocketed “gold” is represented by the qualifications, accolades, and external measures of success we so often emphasise. That’s all fine and good, but we also need to nurture young people to be compassionate, kind, and grateful for what they have and appreciate that their impact on the world goes far beyond the medals they might pick up on the way. We need to ensure they each have a coat with two pockets.
And my friend? Yep, he, too, wears a coat with two pockets. He’s a gold mine, and I’m lucky to count on him as a friend.
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