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Center for Enlightened Leadership
 
THE LENS E-NEWSLETTER/JOURNAL

Using the Experiences of Our Lives
By TOM VONA

  Tom Vona
  Tom Vona
Senior Associate and Mentor

We give a huge amount of attention to the advantages of youth in our society, and who can deny that it’s great to be young? As the years pass, however, I’ve come to realize that there’s also a lot to be said about the benefits of growing older. Of course, I’m not talking about the aches or pains or other infirmities that can go hand-in-hand with the aging process. What I’m talking about here is our heightened ability to use a lifetime of experiences and life lessons, both good and bad, to grow personally (and professionally) and to become a better person.

Accepting one’s age, whatever it may be, and embracing all that one has learned give enormous richness to one’s life. For me, and for many people of my age, this is a time to give back in whatever ways we can, whether through our professional expertise, charitable work, or possibly by entering a whole new field of endeavor that helps us to grow and become better people. Growing older isn’t for the faint of heart, but it can bring out in people resources of strength and love they never knew they possessed.

While I’ve had what I would call two retirements, I continue to do whatever I can to assist both those in my chosen profession and those less fortunate than me through work in my church. Originally, of course, my experiences from a long career in education gave me the opportunity to work with many outstanding educators from whom I learned a great deal. This rich variety of learnings is now available for me to share with others who are either entering the field of education or moving up through the ranks of administration. Monetary gain is no longer the issue. Rather, such sharing is a matter of giving back to the profession I love. Not only is this sharing immensely rewarding and fulfilling, but it helps a semi-retired person stay up-to-date on current educational law and trends in order to work with new administrators.

Another body of experience in my life that has helped me to grow as a person and has promoted my spiritual growth has been the work with the poor I have done through my church. I have received a whole new outlook on life, on materialism, on what is important in life, and on the true meaning of what it is to be a giving, caring person. While we all know that poverty exists and do whatever we can by contributing to one organization or another, seeing extreme poverty up close is an entirely different experience. Through my church I have met people I would never have had the opportunity to meet otherwise. I have not found indolent individuals who want everything given to them, as some people characterize those on social welfare programs. I have found people who are working hard but who, for a variety of reasons, simply cannot make ends meet. The decline into poverty can start with one unforeseen event: a sick child or a car that won’t start that cau ses them to miss work. One little accident can cause a person’s or a family’s financial house of cards to tumble down. I have been in homes in the winter with no heat, no electricity, no food in the refrigerator—and I have been changed by these experiences. I have also seen goodness, hope, and tremendous, humbling gratitude in people who need help. I often think I gain more from reaching out to these people than I am able to make available to them. I believe I have become a better person because of this work. This life experience has definitely advanced my own spiritual growth by making me more aware of what is truly important in life and what God really wants from us.

As I think about my life up to this point I realize how blessed I have always been. I have learned many life lessons from my parents, my teachers, my church, my wife and children (and now grandchildren), my extended family, my friends, those with whom I have worked, my many life experiences, and through the multitudes of people with whom I’ve come in contact from all walks of life. All of these lessons have made me who I am and have also provided me with many opportunities and responsibilities. I have the opportunities I do because of all that has happened in my life. Without my education and all the many advantages I’ve had, I would not be in the position to do all that I am able to do today. With those blessings comes responsibility. I must try to use whatever God-given talents I have to try my best to make our world a better place in whatever small ways I can. We all share that responsibility.


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