La-Z-Boys and Winston Churchill – June 19, 2015
High School Division Head Blog – June 19, 2015
For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? I will make a pathway through the wilderness. I will create rivers in the dry wasteland. – Isaiah 43:19
Before my wife and I were married, I was a bachelor for about 10 years after college. I owned a home, which I affectionately called my “Man Cave.” I vividly remember the day I moved in. I carefully placed all the furniture in perfect position, all centered around the best part – my green faux-leather La-Z-Boy recliner. It was the perfect home.
Ten years later, when my wife moved in, she had the audacity to immediately start re-arranging the furniture, adding her own furniture, and heaven forbid, throwing out mine. Who was this stranger entering my home and moving everything around without my express written consent? She looked at me in disbelief as I explained to her that the furniture had not been moved in ten years, as evidenced by the well-worn marks in the carpet.
Then she crossed the line … she looked at my sacred, green, La-Z-Boy recliner and said it had to go. I desperately pleaded, trying to make her understand that my recliner was as comfortable as a broken-in catcher’s mitt. You don’t part with your favorite mitt. You wait for the Smithsonian Museum to call to display it for generations to admire. As you can guess, I put my foot down and drew a line in the sand. About tenminutes later, I was helping my wife haul that chair out of the house, never to be napped in again.
As I questioned my sacred vows that I had just a few days earlier recited to my bride, I began to watch the wonders that she began to perform in our living room. As I began to trust her more and more, I saw that she was actually making our house into a home. To be honest, the change was difficult because I had become so familiar with the way I had arranged things in that living room. I saw no need to change anything because it was working for me. But once my wife had waved her magic wand, I began to realize how much I was missing out on. She brought in splashes of color, works of art, family pictures, and comfortable furniture that brought new life to the room. Once I swallowed my pride, I had to admit that she had done something special with the place that I could have never done or been willing to do myself.
I have been at PBS for just about a year now. I have spent a lot of time observing and learning the culture. Parkview has a rich history of tradition – something invaluable to an institution. Sir Winton Churchill once said, “A love for tradition has never weakened a nation, indeed it has strengthened nations in their hour of peril.” As a history teacher, nothing means more to me than guarding and respecting tradition. But at the same time, I have had to learn to balance my love for tradition and consistency with a willingness to try something new. A contemporary and good friend of Churchill’s, President Franklin Roosevelt, said, “It is common sense to take a method and try it. If it fails, admit it frankly and try another. But above all, try something.”
As the largest private, Christian school in the state of Louisiana, I believe PBS should be the flagship and envy of Christian schools around the state. Other school administrators should be looking to us and seeking to emulate our practices and programs. Though we are very successful in a lot of different areas, I do not believe we have arrived at that level yet. In order to achieve that goal, we cannot remain docked in the harbor. We have to set sail for new horizons. We may face rough waters and powerful storms at times, but I believe the adventure will be worth it. It is often frightening and difficult to depart from the safe harbor; but if it was not hard, every school would be doing it. It is the hard that makes the challenge great.
Sometimes I reminisce about that old, green La-Z-Boy recliner and think about the comfort and familiarity that it provided. But then I think about what I would be missing out on if I hadn’t taken that leap of faith. What gives me confidence to tread into unknown waters is knowing that Christ is the Captain of our ship. The Lord has proven good and faithful to PBS for the last 35 years. He has a great and mighty mission for us to accomplish here at PBS. I hope you will join me in looking to Him to captain our ship as we set sail for new horizons.
For His Glory,
Ben D. Haindel
High School Division Head