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DAVID BENTLEY'S COLUMN |
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MAINTAINING INTEGRITY
This week's issue of Time Magazine has an amazing photograph in it. The picture shows a stretch of railroad track in Germany after recent flooding. The ground underneath the track has been washed away, and the pieces of metal have curled themselves into something resembling the path a death-defying roller coaster might take. Yet, somehow, the pieces of track and tie bars have held together without coming apart. They have maintained their integrity. When I looked at the photograph, I wondered to myself how that metal could have held together under the force of all that flood water. I couldn't imagine how something as rigid and inflexible as metal could not be pulled apart by the rushing water. However, as I looked at the photo more closely, I could see how the water had flowed between the pieces of track, and how the track had made itself flexible by twisting rather than pulling apart. If something as rigid and generally inflexible as steel railroad tracks could withstand the force of raging flood water while maintaining it's basic integrity, why do we humans have such difficulty resisting the forces that threaten our own integrity? Suddenly, while staring at the photo of the twisted tracks, I realized the answer. The pieces of the track did not act independently nor did they resist. They held onto each other for strength, supported one another, and reshaped themselves so the water could pass through them. Wouldn't it be a different world if each of us, especially those in leadership positions such as government officials and corporate executives, looked at that photograph and really took in the lesson it teaches? Integrity doesn't have to be sacrificed to survive outside forces.
© 2002 David Bentley David Bentley, M.Ed. & Personal Coach, coaches clients through the game of life, helping them find balance, clarity of direction, and purpose in an ever-changing world. He can be reached by phone at 360.378.8436 by e-mail at david@coachbentley.com or visit his Web site: www.coachbentley.com |
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