Poem: "If Your Actions Inspire Others"

[ysabetwordsmith]

This poem came out of the April 2, 2019 Poetry Fishbowl. It was inspired and sponsored by Anthony Barrette. It also fills the "outdoor school" square in my 4-1-19 card for the School Days Bingo fest.


"If Your Actions Inspire Others"


The United States Army attracts
people from the lower class
not just for the patriotism or
the money, but the teaching style.

Unlike regular schools, the Army uses
hands-on practice more than books.

It puts recruits through calisthenics
to build strength for real activities.
They learn how to handle guns,
knives, and unarmed combat.

They begin with obstacle courses
for individuals and work up
to leadership courses
that teach teamwork.

They understand how
to train leaders and
how to define them:

"If your actions inspire
others to dream more,
learn more, do more
and become more,
you are a leader."

The books and lectures
are just there to add theory
to practical performance.

The Army experience offers
not just training but also jobs
for people whose excellence
lies primarily in their bodies.

It's a different way of learning,
but it works for physical folks.

The heart of the Army depends
on getting the recruits out of
their heads and into their bodies.

It works because that's what they're there for.

* * *

Notes:

"If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader."
– John Quincy Adams

Calisthenics is a type of exercises that uses the body's own weight to develop strength. Here is a typical military workout.

Combat training includes guns, other hand-held weapons, and hand-to-hand techniques.

Here is a common obstacle course for individual use. A leadership obstacle course is designed for teams to figure out solutions to the problems it poses.

Comments

[siliconshaman]

Then they have ROTC.. which is a whole heap of 'book learning'...