Entitlement

Is there a more relevant sign of the times than this word?  For me, there may not be a more disgusting word.  In all facets of society people demand that they have the "right" to whatever they seek.  We expect others to take care of problems that, for the most part, are brought upon by our own actions.  We throw our hands up expecting free handouts without putting in our share of the work.  

Ever read the book "The Little Red Hen?"  In this children's book is a beautiful depiction of how our society has become.  In the story, the little red hen is going through the process of planting, harvesting, grinding the wheat, and baking it into bread.  At each stage of the process, the little red hen asks the lazy dog, the sleepy cat, and the noisy yellow duck: "Who will help me?"  Each time the all refuse with a simple "Not I." When the time comes for the bread to be eaten, she asks: "Who will help me eat this bread?" Eagerly, they all reply: "I will!" The little red hen explains that none of the others had once put in any effort to get the end result, and therefore she would be the only one to eat the bread.  Luckily, this book was a staple in my household.

A personal story my good friend, David Dainty (Our head baseball coach at Southeast High School), shared with his baseball team one day in the infield last season, shows that distancing ourselves from this mental state of mind has its' rewards.  Our senior year of high school, we had what we would consider a pretty good basketball team.  We went 15-4, and clinched a sub-state title that year.  Coach Dainty, who had been out for his Junior season with an ankle injury, saw limited time on the court his senior year.  I'll be the first to tell you that he was a very good player, but we had MANY good players.  He wasn't always satisfied with the amount of playing time he received, but he never complained, even though he was a Senior.  This wasn't the case for the entire team.  CANCER- destroys, breaks down, attacks its' host body.  We had one of those on that team.  He complained bitterly and constantly about his "lack of playing" and that he was "undoubtedly better than the players on the court."  He was a "Senior." He "deserved" it.  Not only was this not done just amongst the team, it was known that he was unsatisfied throughout the student-body.  Why did he feel entitled?  What had he done to EARN that time.  I couldn't come up with a good answer.    His situation was dealt with sternly by the Coach and the team leaders, while Coach Dainty continued to be a supporting team member.  Coach Dainty never did quit that team. As for the CANCER, you could say we gave it chemotherapy.  The story closes with Coach Dainty on the infield last spring.  He never quit, never felt that he was "entitled" to something. He now stood in front of his team as a leader.  The man who believed in him enough to give him that opportunity, was none other than his ol' basketball coach that he never gave up on...

How do we change this?  Well, it starts with our leaders.  Parents, teachers, coaches, and government officials.  We are to blame. Not the kids.  Next, our leaders must work TOGETHER.  It seems that parents, coaches, and community leaders are always out to get each other.  Continuity and the pursuit of common goals of personal responsibility will allow us to change an attitude of ENTITLEMENT into FULFILLMENT.

BELIEVE

Everyone has something unique in life that makes them tick. Art, music, sports, education, agriculture, etc.  For me it has always been pursuit of the improbable.  The stories I enjoy the most are those of obstacles overcome, deficits erased, and the overshadowed bursting into greatness.  When it seems someone is down & out, but is relentless in the pursuit of their passion.  Those are the reasons I wanted to become a coach.  As coaches we are not given the opportunity to relent.  We don't have that option because it is not in our DNA.  There is a certain chromosome that refuses to let us press the "Stop" button.  When everything is stacked up against us, we don't give in. We grab the hand next to us, and we push through.  That is why I decided to title this blog as such.  Never give up. Never give in. Always BELIEVE...

"Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you respond to it." - LOU HOLTZ