Diamond in the rough
From Gordon Suber at Clark Community Network:
Too small to play football. Too short to play basketball.
In Wesley K. Clark: A Biography, author Antonia Felix spends a great deal of time discussing the role that the Little Rock, Arkansas Boys Club played in the life of her subject during the 1950s.
Felix writes that at age eleven Clark’s stepfather told him he was too small to play football, and too short to play basketball, but his competitive nature drove him to find a sport.
So it was that at the Boy’s Club in the eighth grade, he joined the swim team.
. . . . . . . . . . . .
At The Hynes Convention Center in Boston this morning, General Clark gave the keynote speech to more than four thousand delegates who had traveled from across America to attend the 100th National Conference for Boys and Girls Clubs (BGCA) of America.
My travels have given me the opportunity to witness General Clark dozens of times. At universities, on panels with some of America’s distinguished leaders, in the cornfields of Iowa, the frozen towns of New Hampshire, and in Harlem, New York—to name a few.
On this morning, when Clark said, “I’m really happy to be here,” it was my sense that he really was.
The General confirmed what his stepfather had said, and spoke about the lessons learned during his years competing on that swim team. His stories recalled the early discipline and hard work that preceded a distinguished military career and beyond.
He exhorted the audience to continue their work with kids: many who live on the margins of American society.
“Young people need role models. Find that diamond in the rough!” he exclaimed to sustained applause, as the audience listened intently to one of their own, well-knowing that this club kid from Little Rock, too small to play football, and too short to play basketball, had grown up to run for president of the United States.
. . . . . . . . . . . .
When Wes Clark finished speaking, the woman siting next to me was applauding—and in tears.
"What has moved you to display such emotion," I asked.
"I had heard about him, but always in a political light. He is so genuine. And I feel he is one of us."
And this morning, I received an E-mail from one of the national (home office Atlanta) staff:
"He is truly an inspiring man and we are so honored to call him one of ours."
If General Clark could patent the speech to the Boys and Girls Clubs he gave in Boston yesterday, well—he might have something.
