Yesterday, I read the obituary of yet another KC hero, Mr Edward Macdonald who dedicated his life to making young men all they could be. For forty seven solid years this man was either in the classroom or in the administrative offices teaching and providing direction to young men as they sought wisdom and guidance through the years that would determine who they become as adults. He gave to us what we so desperately needed, an education and in doing so shared with us what it means to care and make your life-ordained contribution. I'm pretty sure Mr Mac got a salary, just as I'm sure he had other offers to switch careers and increase his remuneration, yet he chose to stay to "help the boys."
So as I sat and pondered the life of a great human being, my good friend Earl Adams calls and tells me of the passing of his beloved grandmother, Mama Luby, who cared for him and his siblings and taught them life lessons they fondly recall to this day as they marvel at her wisdom. Very soon thereafter another good friend, Glen Laman , called to say his older brother had passed away and then another good friend, Patrick Hector , called within hours, to say his older brother by a year had passed away the day before. We chatted for a while and he reflected upon the days when his big brother used to be his protector and enforcer at KC. We laughed as he recalled how he would pick the fights and then get "Bull" to meet out the physical punishment to the unlucky adversary. Looking back, " Bull " was a hero to him and all his smaller classmates, because he fought for them and helped ease their passage through KC.
Life can truly hit you where it hurts sometimes and the finality of death is the most goring pain it can inflict. So as I reflect on my mortality, I think about my contribution. I wonder what will be the net result of us all being here, will we have made a contribution on the path of life so we will be remembered fondly, or will we be a statistic that just came, breathed God's air and left a dull stain on the canvas of life.
In my own way, I'm trying to give a little back, maybe not as much as Mr Mac. In my own way, I'm trying to care for the young and aspiring, maybe not as much as Mama Luby, yes, I'm fighting for the less fortunate youngster who just needs a small hand up, maybe not as tenaciously as "Bull," but we must keep the fight up, because when it's all said and done, our lives will be assessed by our contributions and we are all not going to get to go the distance like Mama Luby.
Just today, I learned that the KC headboy of 1975, Oliver Harrison , passed away suddenly yesterday at age 47. Yes, for some the race will only be a sprint, so we must get involved today. And for those who want to wait until the optimum time, when there is excess money and time, the reality is for some of us there will never be excess money or time. And for those who think there is not enough to share, just ponder all those who shared with us, did they always have more than enough to share? Think about all those that looked out for us, were they always in a position where they didn't have to sacrifice anything to help us?
I shudder to think as we trod on this road of life that despite all the help we got from the Mr Mac 's of the world, we are all so consumed with our own singular successes that we are unable to reach back and make a small difference to the youngsters who will be us in a decade or two. Our race will be over and the only people who really knew we were here would be our families. That would be a tragedy.
