An “exception to the rule” has pretty well been the story of my life. It seems that I was always an exception to whatever the overriding rule was. In my family, I loved opera and classical music while my family loved country music. In my local school, I was poor and happy, but the teachers recommended me for and placed me into the St. Louis Gifted Program, which placed me in the wealthy school among rich students. My school mates came from highly-educated and degreed families, while I had parents with only a seventh and eighth grade education.
I was hired for my first teaching position at both Ft. Sill elementary schools because the state granted me an “emergency certification.” I had not one hour of education classes in college. I was later hired as a teaching elementary principal, again with emergency certification. I earned all my education degrees after the fact, while I was actively teaching.
Our private school, Lawton Academy of Arts and Sciences, has been successful for twenty years as an exception to the rule. I have not taken one penny of aid from the government…but used the “Little Red Hen” principle: if you want it done right, do it yourself! We have attained the highest form of school accreditation (North Central through AdvancEd) and even received the distinguished Midwest award in Chicago last year. Why is this considered an exception to the rule? Only one note of recognition from the Oklahoma State Department of Education has ever come our way…that being recognized as a private school by way of North Central and AdvancEd.
Perhaps it is because I’ve always been an exception to the rule, that I worked to attain the highest standards in whatever task I undertook. While others could look down their noses at me or my school because I didn’t accomplish things the “usual” way, I determined to excel that much more…just to prove it could be done. Have I ever regretted it? No. Like the little red hen in the storybook, I enjoyed the fruit of my labor and was happy to share it with my family who worked just as hard by my side.
Yet, I run into people who want an “exception to the rule” as a way to bypass necessary steps in a process towards excellence. As Zig Zigler once taught in his management courses, “See You at the Top,” there is no fast elevator to success at the top. There are steps you must take to reach goals which lead onward and upward. My students want to take shortcuts rather than learn their facts or their forms of writing. However, these shortcuts prevent the consistency that leads to excellence.
I’ve watched students for years as they learn new video games. They want someone to show them shortcuts or to provide them with cheat codes. If I ask them why they don’t learn the patterns themselves, they always reply, “It takes too long!” It seems not many people feel the experience of the process is part of the joy of the accomplishment. I find that very sad. Maybe that’s why not many of my recent students find satisfaction in recording their experiences and thoughts in poetry or narrative. I do know many athletes are also trying to “skip to the top” the short way…bypassing experiences that could make them even more successful in the end. Perhaps I am just a seventy-five-year old who has enjoyed my experiences in life…and I find myself asking “What’s all the rush about?” Slow down and live each moment, both good and hard, to the fullest! At my age I can truly say, “Life is too short!”
- Kay