Monuments, Memorials And Doing Better

I just spent four incredible days with my wife in Washington, D.C. which is, as shocking as it may be to some, a place I have never visited before. One of the things that struck me as I reflected on my experience is that Washington is a place of memorials and monuments. There are impressive memorials and monuments to be sure, and well deserved. (I know there is far more to the city than the touristy spots, but since that is the part of Washington I visited this time, it’s what I’m talking about.) Everywhere I looked I saw towers of marble and slabs of granite honoring the contributions of the dead to get us where we are today. This was reinforced as we visited Arlington National Cemetery, the Pentagon Memorial and the Peterson House (where President Lincoln died.) We saw museums filled with important documents that tell us who we are and what we value. We saw so many reminders of the giants of American History. More than once I wondered how they would react if they could come back today. We saw much to that tells the story of how we got to where we are, but precious little to tell us where we are going next.

We also saw incredible buildings where our government and public servants currently work; mostly behind heavily barricaded roads and guarded doors (because of national security). In other words, most of our governing is not open to public view. At the end of the day, watching the news, we would hear all about what was lacking, or what was wrong with the government and our current leaders (the same ones who will doubtless someday be honored with a building or a monument named after them). If these stories are the stories of our future, we are going nowhere fast in a hurry because there is precious little that we can agree on.

I find myself wondering what a huge impact we could have on our world if we reversed things. What if we acknowledged the things that were wrong at the end of a newscast filled with all that was right and good and noteworthy? What if our national dialog and news was filled with stories of inspiration and events that promoted the common good? What if we named buildings in honor of living children and adults who inspire us to care for others with their world changing ideas? What if we spent time building up the successes instead of tearing down the failures? What if we concentrated our considerable national energy on doing good locally, nationally and globally? I am currently rereading a book by James C. Collins and Jerry I. Porras entitled Build To Last; Successful Habits of Visionary Companies, in which they debunk the myth that the most successful companies exist first and foremost to maximize profits. According to their research they discovered that visionary companies are equally guided by a core ideology – core values and a sense of purpose beyond just making money. (p.8) Visionary companies have endured because they have stayed true to their ideals, have pursued the best of the visions that brought them into existence and have been willing to change everything else to stay true to those values. I think this is how we honor our nation and how we focus on being a Visionary nation and not just a might nation to be feared. I think we can make an even larger global impact if we are able to keep our focus on building on the positive and honoring the best ideas among us regardless of which side of the “aisle” they from which they come. I think we need to spend less time on tearing people down, or exposing their weakness, or yelling about the things about which we disagree and more time shouting about the good news.

Our trip left me feeling grateful for all who have given their lives, be it in battle or in public service, to the ideals that we hold dear. I am grateful for those who so doggedly serve the public even when the public is less than complimentary. As I reflect on the contributions of our American Heroes, I am left with a sense we can do better, what is required is a change of focus from the negative to the positive.