Lessons from A Bygone Time
My great-grandpa Doc Stanwell, friend of the great Atticus Finch, shared his Southern wisdom with me in his last years. His stories taught me valuable lessons that can be applied to your business.
Join me now as I share lessons from the bygone days of To Kill a Mockingbird.
“Jump!”
The boy stood on the makeshift diving board down at the pond just outside of town, eyes wide in trepidation, knees knocking. Doc stood a short distance away, water up to his waist, urging his grandson to take his first leap into the water.
“But, grandpa, I’m gonna go underwater. What if I don’t come up?”
“Come on, Rory, you know how to swim,” replied doc. “Just jump in, you’ll find your way to the top. Summer’s nearly over and you won’t get a lot more chances before it gets too cold.”
Doc had this look on his wise, wizened face that was at once encouraging but also a little frightening. Not that he was scary to the kids—he was a big man, but gentle and loving—but a body was afraid of disappointing such a great man as Doc was.
Young Rory stood looking down at the placid brown surface of the Southern pond, smelled the faint scent of mud, fish and frogs. He imagined man-eating catfish, pictured cotton-mouth vipers that only came to life in his childish imagination…but when he looked back at the face of his grandfather, the confidence he saw there overrode his darkest fears.
So, the boy jumped… Of course, instinct took over and in seconds, up he popped a bit frantic at first, then a wide grin broke out on his face. After that first jump, Rory couldn’t get enough of jumping off that board. Once he found his courage, he discovered something he loved, and it wasn’t long before he branched out into diving and flips and never looked back.
A whole lot of people want to live here in Central Oregon. With the economy resurging, jobs are plentiful, and the opportunity to get into the swim is here for the taking. It takes courage to make a big move, we know, but there has never been a better time to move to this wonderful place—and it may not be long before finding any job here becomes extremely competitive. If you’re wanting to make that move, NOW is the time to make the leap. Come on in; the water’s fine!
Mid Oregon Personnel has full-time offices in Bend, Redmond, Madras, and Prineville. Visit www.midoregonpersonnel.com for more information.
*Benjamin Pierce is a fictional character created by ghost writer, Kelly Walker
(Photo above: Know when to jump! | Photo courtesy of Intrepid Marketing)
