Our Best Days are just beyond the Mayan End of Days!

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to heaven, we were all going direct the other way - in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only."

~ Charles Dickens, a Tale of Two Cities  

Okay, Okay, I am sure you are wondering what the heck the Mayan End of Days has to do with community & economic development and the growth of Jones County. Bear with me.

As you have no doubt seen in previous writing I have a strange way of looking at things but I do have a point.

As we have recently graduated sixty participants from our three leadership programs (C.L.A.S.S., Leadership Jones County and Future Leaders of Jones County), I have been thinking a lot about how leaders take on tasks and what it is that prepares them for their destiny. I have been going over last year's leadership programs and evaluations looking for changes that need to be made to make an even bigger impact with next year's class. (From the success of this year's participants, that will be a lofty goal, but I think we can accomplish it!)

In a somewhat purging my mind of the leadership program and trying to transition from the "doing" of the program to the "planning" of the program I decided I would take some "me time" and catch up on the recorded programming I have on my DVR.

Unfortunately with an almost three year old at the house, Rebekah and I don't get TV privileges until after 8 pm. By that time of the night I don't even feel like watching TV as I am still trying to get the theme songs from the Mickey Mouse Club House, Dora the Explorer, Veggie Tales, Wonder Pets and other shows out of my head so that I can actually sleep at night.

Interject the DVR. (What I consider to be one of the greatest inventions of our time.) I can record several shows I want to watch and wait days or weeks to actually watch them.

As I scrolled through my DVR listings (after all of Ethan's prerecorded cartoons) I got to my list... a History Channel Special on the Mayan End of Days, a National Geographic show called Doomsday Preppers, a Discovery Channel rerun called Doomsday Bunkers and the movie 2012 with John Cusack. (I had a couple of other "happier" sitcoms too... but those don't fit the story.)

As I looked at my list of shows that I had recorded I was somewhat depressed by their morbid nature. But then it hit me as I saw the relationship between the shows and what we are doing to prepare the next generation of leaders in our county.

One of the things I think drives leaders is the execution of preparation and character in times of uncertainty.

 I certainly don't hope the worst for anyone in our community, but I do think preparation is key in our survival, business decision, daily activity, and basis of our growth.

I have a guilty pleasure in watching many of the "history" specials about the "End of Days" and the thought that aliens helped our ancient ancestors "predict" the future and when the world will end. I also enjoy watching the "prepping" shows, but I think that feeds my OCD addiction of gadgets, organization and being prepared.

I don't know what will happen, I don't think anyone does. I don't think we are supposed to know. But I do like to plan ahead and get my mind right to make sure that if the world ends tomorrow or if I get hit by a bus, my family is taken care of and prepared to pick up the flag and march forward. (Fortunately we have very few buses in Jones County so my odds are pretty good.)

I am not necessarily an advocate of planning for the end of days, a zombie apocalypse, or the collapse of the world economy, but I will tell you, in watching some of these shows, I began to look at my "72 hr emergency kit/ hurricane kit" that I had on the coast. I had let it dwindle down to two packages of ramen noodles and a bottle of water. I don't think that will get our family of three very far in an emergency. After about two months of consciously planning and storing up, I should be okay with my supplies if we have another Katrina-like event.

All of us still remember what Katrina did to our State and our home. We can't sit on the sidelines and say "it won't happen to me". As we head into the hurricane season, I encourage you to look at your supplies and stock up BEFORE you need them. It is always better to have supplies and not need them than to need them and not have them.

Be the leader your family needs. Be the leader our community needs. Follow the motto of the Boy Scouts of America: "Be Prepared"... (and be safe.)

Larkin