Words of Wisdom, 4/28/06

If you have ever tried to buy or sell anything on E-Bay, you know that the price is directly related to the uniqueness of the item on sale.  In other words, if you are looking to buy a mint 1968 Chevrolet Corvette and there’s only one available, you are going to pay a lot more than you would for a 1999 Honda, one of 25,000 such vehicles.  The point is, the more unique, the higher the value.

One of my favorite books is “The Little Prince,” by Antoine de St. Exupery.  In one of the more insightful parts the Prince gets depressed because he sees a field full of roses.  They all look exactly the same as the rose that he loves and he believes her value has been diminished.  Fortunately, he has a fox to explain to him that a rose or a person’s value is in their willingness to share their uniqueness, to allow themselves to be really known by another person.

As I stand in the hall at the beginning of the school year what I see are students that all look the same.  As the year goes on, I am allowed to know those students as individuals.  When that starts to happen, the value of those young people goes up in my eyes.

The most important thing you can do as a friend is to really let another person get to know you.  When they do, they’ll find out about your uniqueness and your value in their eyes will go up.  When that happens, you’ll be able to be a better friend.  Take a chance.  Be willing to be known.