PLEASE. . .DON’T STAND BY

If I tell someone to ‘stand by’ he or she might take me literally and truly just stand.  One can stand on a street corner in New York; frozen in place by the anxiety of stepping into New York Traffic.  One can stand by his or her desk; fearful of sitting down and getting to work.  It seems that all ‘standing by’ requires a certain posture – this posture allows one to ‘stand by’ for some time.

On the other hand, if I ask someone to help me dislodge a stuck door or move a heavy object or to simply cause change to occur in one’s physical environment then one won’t do it from a ‘stand by’ posture.  One will choose to lean into it – if you don’t (think: transfer your weight for example) you have no chance of succeeding; you won’t move anything.

The life-invested person understands that the choice (‘choice’ is important) of posture is the critical ingredient.  Consider the Starbucks barista who steps into any situation and makes it better.  Her posture is forward, she is looking for opportunities to serve.  She looks for trouble for trouble provides her an opportunity to serve.

I have spent countless hours in a variety of classrooms in seven different countries.  From elementary school through graduate school there always seems to be the ‘reluctant student.’  You know him or her well: the reluctant student is sitting – head leaning to one side, resting on a shoulder, slumped at the desk, chewing on a pencil.  This is student as prisoner.

The chances of great work or great learning occurring is close to, if not less than, zero.  In addition there is no transfer of positive emotion, no energy going back to the teacher or being spread to other students.  My heart aches when I visualize and remember these students.  1n 1967 my experience of reluctant 9^th graders transformed how I approached teaching and learning (that’s another story for another time).

This ‘reluctant student’ posture, attitude and lack of energy afflicts many folks – ranging from the ‘fast-food worker’ to the overworked ‘multi-millionaire’ and almost all folks in between.  It is a dis-ease that runs amok in our world.

Now, gentle reader, imagine with me the person as ‘artist’ and put him or her in the same situations.  The ‘artist’ is barely restrained, straining at the bit to get moving, to become engaged.  The ‘artist’ leans into the challenge or the situation.  I can see the ‘artist’ literally leaning in just as the horse leans in as it waits impatiently to be released so it can run.  The ‘artist’s’ energy creates energy and this energy moves into and around all others; the energy is a positive virus running amok.

The ‘artist’s’ posture changes the ‘artist’ and also changes those ‘standing by.’  When are you, gentle reader, and when am I, the ‘artist’ – when do we just choose to ‘stand by?’