Looking Out for Pascagoula in the New Year
Children can say and do the darndest things. As the old adage says "Out of the mouths of babes." At times, children, unbeknownst to them, seem to highlight or portray an adult point of view that reaches far beyond their years. It is in these times that life becomes a little clearer. For me, much of what I have come to believe and practice has been influenced in some way by my own children. The truths that my children teach me clarify often intangible issues and help put my world into proper prospective. Keep reading to see what I mean.
When my daughter was the ripe old age of three, she and I journeyed to the store to pick up a few household items, which of course to her included a needless toy strategically placed in eye-shot of any suspect toddler. But I digress. As we parked, I gave her the typical fatherly lecture about holding my hand, not running off, and so on. She obliged my rambling with a sweet, "Yes, daddy," and then made an interesting statement. She said, "Daddy, if anybody tries to get me, you'll beat them up won't you, daddy?" Being the good, strong, masculine father all men secretly desire to be, I fearlessly proclaimed that I would "beat up" anyone who dared mess with my little princess. This made her happy and off we went into the store.
A few aisles into our trek, a large, intimidating, muscular man turned onto our aisle. I nodded pleasantly, as did he, and the world was right. Until my daughter looks up and sees this giant of a man. As forceful as she could and staring straight at the gentleman, she exclaimed, "If you mess with me, my daddy's gonna beat you up!" My face turned three shades of red. I placed what was in my hand back on the shelf, gave the man a nod once again and quickly hurried off the aisle. Rounding the corner, I glanced back to see the giant of a man chuckling to himself.
Truth be known, had he messed with my daughter I would have fought as hard as I could to resist the man, no matter the cost. That's what fathers do. But in reality and being completely honest, I sure am glad he was a nice gentleman because my face wouldn't have looked the same when I got home if he wasn't.
Ultimately, my daughter simply wanted to reassure herself that her daddy was looking out for her when she felt scared or intimidated. She needed to know that I had her best interest at heart. She wanted to feel safe and secure, and in her thinking, there was no one better to protect her than her daddy because I had proclaimed in no uncertain terms my willingness to defend her at all costs.
As I relay this story to you, my mind settles once again on Pascagoula and her citizens. It seems we as citizens need the same reassurance and protection as did my daughter. We need to feel like our elected and community leaders have our best interest at heart, that they will defend our community at all costs, even if it means not getting reelected or reappointed. We need to feel safe with their decisions and understand their motives.
Many of you have heard it said that doing what's right isn't always easy, but it's always right. That is the essence of what a true leader should strive to reflect. A true leader, one whose personal gain or fame is secondary to what's best and what's right, realizes that they too are just a drop in the ocean of life and that their goal as a leader should be to be willing to take a stand for what is truly in the best interest of the people they represent.
As citizens of Pascagoula, it is imperative that we elect and promote leaders that exemplify these qualities. The elected and community leaders we place our trust in serve a large role in how our city grows, plateaus, or declines over the next decade.
I encourage you to get involved in our elections over the next few months as we once again have the privilege and responsibility of placing leaders in office. Your knowledge of what these men and women believe and represent is a powerful tool in determining how Pascagoula continues forward.
President Calvin Coolidge once said, "Patriotism is easy to understand in America. It means looking out for yourself by looking out for your country." That is the spirit we as citizens of Pascagoula should portray about our city and her leaders. We all achieve and gain more by seeing the big picture as we play our parts together in harmony.
I encourage you to look out for Pascagoula. Our city is indeed poised for progress, but we need leaders that will stand in the gap as we move forward. Now is not the time to blindly follow. Forge ahead with the leaders who inspire and are working for you.
City governmental leaders cannot achieve the vision alone, however - it takes everyone speaking and portraying a positive Pascagoula. What you do in our city, for our city matters. How you think of and speak about our city also matters, if not more. Where you shop, dine, and spend those precious tax dollars weighs heavily on the health of Pascagoula. I implore you to think before you speak and buy.
Let me encourage you to represent a positive Pascagoula in word and deed, in your day to day life, in your business and home. No more branding or labeling that only serves to diminish the vision and dreams of your fellow citizens. Each of us needs to be treating Pascagoula as if it had already reached its potential. Yes, streets need to be paved, gutters need to be fixed, curbs need to be installed, buildings need to be built, but Pascagoula truly is a great place to live, work, worship and play; it has been all of my life. With a little effort on our parts, our city can continue to be great and continue to achieve and progress a little more each and every day.
A city is built on people and we have the best people in the world right here in Pascagoula. We can achieve great things when we all work together. You matter because in Pascagoula, everybody is somebody.
May 2009 bring us a renewed spirit of hope as we again have a responsibility and a privilege of electing city leaders and may we resolve to portray a positive Pascagoula within ourselves from this day forward.
Out of the mouths of babes.
Happy New Year to You and Yours!
Frank Corder,
Pascagoula City Councilman - Ward 4
