Time to Cut Loose?

11/17/14 Time to Cut Loose?

Am I maximizing my capacity to help our students and fellow man? Sure, I do a GOOD job, but am I being GREAT? What’s holding me back? Previous trauma? Complacency? Am I jaded or just bored? Am I too inhibited in my tenacity of the pursuit of change and making a difference? I heard a song this morning that got me thinking. It’s a song we have all heard dozens and dozens of times. I just happened to listen to the words this morning for the first time. Footloose by Kenny Loggins is probably universally vaunted as a topnotch toe-tapper that gets one’s blood pumping- especially pared in our mind with Kevin Bacon’s iconic dancing in the movie. But, the song itself is about “kicking off” the mundanity we allow to bind us and keep us stuck in ruts.  Consider this quote from the song, “You're… yearning for …somebody to tell you that life ain't passing you by. I'm trying to tell you it will if you don't even try. You can fly if you'd only cut loose.”  Certainly we should be cautious in some cases, but maybe we need to take risks in reaching others- especially where it involves the ways we help our students. Going that extra step or asking a deeper question might be the difference in just helping an immediate concern versus making a major difference in their life. My pledge for today? “I’m turning it loose!”