Go Tell the World

Earlier this semester I had an opportunity to share an observation that I had about a young man with his mother. This student is very quiet. He doesn’t rush to the front of the pack, demanding to be heard or seen. He gets his work done, but tends to fly under the radar. In spite of that, I’ve noticed him several times throughout his years at our school and have had some very memorable, very fulfilling interactions with him. I’ve come to know him as someone who has a great sense of humor, who has a capacity for compassion and friendship, and as someone who is relied upon and trusted by his classmates. He is also one of those people that I look for when I feel like I need a positive interaction with someone; when I feel like I need my faith in what I do restored.

That part in itself is not too remarkable. Ours is a large community of very nice young men. They are all, to some degree, funny, compassionate, and reliable. Sometimes these traits are drowned out by the messiness that accompanies adolescence, but at their heart they are good boys and I know this and accept it as the rule, rather than the exception. But even in a community of good people we probably all have those special individuals that bring us even more joy when we interact with them.

The reason that this interaction stood out for me is because I happened to be communicating with this young man’s mother and I mentioned my observations about her son to her. Her response surprised me. She knew these things about her son to be true, but it was especially touching for her in that moment to hear that others saw it. She shared with me her joy in hearing that someone else had noticed it, that someone else could see what she saw in her son and cared enough to share those experiences and promote him and motivate him forward. My guess is that many people know these things to be true about him, but I am also pretty sure that they don’t often share those observations. We’re all busy, right? Stopping to talk and share good news takes time, and when time is in short supply it seems like, sadly, the more fulfilling interactions are the first to go.

What must Mary have felt like when the shepherds approached her? She and Joseph had been preparing for the birth for some time, but now that it was upon them, the world was responding, noticing, and reacting. Mary knew what her son was. She knew that He was the Son of God, that he was the Light of the World. And now, in the form of these shepherds, she had her first glimpse at how the world would respond. If only we all had the gift of shepherds knocking down our door to tell us how great our sons are?!?! But we don’t. Instead we are called to be like the shepherds - to share the good that we see in others; to promote them so that they may go out and do their work.

It was slightly unusual for me to share an observation like that, and maybe it was unusual for her to hear something like that. But the funny thing is that it was so easy to give her a moment of my time to share what I saw in her son. It took no energy at all on my part, and in the end we both felt inspired by this young man who we both interact with each day, albeit in very different ways.

This year I am keeping that quiet young man in the forefront of my mind. He is a reminder to me to promote those that I encounter, to encourage them, to share with them the strengths that I see in them. That is the lesson of the shepherds: We are to see the miracle in the child, and then go tell the world about it.

Author: Tom Garrison, Principal