Familiar faces, old guys, and pledges

Well, after a full day of seminars and breakout sessions, it's time for a little reflection. Yesterday I saw several familiar faces, though they didn't all see me. I admit that I avoided them, mostly. They were from various work experiences I've had over the years, with different companies in different cities, and ... NOT ONE of them reminded me of a happy time.

I really felt out of place here, similar to how I have felt during those times in the last year when I went into an office building. I would have rather been at a seminar that talked about teaching or about Biblical studies, or simply... back home. :(

I mean, it's lovely here - and I've had some opportunity to read, meditate, pray, think, see a movie (Appaloosa - great!), watch postseason baseball and a new HBO series (Trueblood - weird), as well as get some intellectual stimulation. But, it's painful to some degree to be among fellow professionals... in a profession I want to leave.

What was heartening, though, was to see old guys blazing trail! In this seminar on cutting-edge techniques in my profession, 5 of the first 6 speakers were over 50! It wasn't the young punks and new PhDs who were showing off their research. It was the old dogs who've been around forever, but haven't stopped thinking and growing.

True, some may have young PhDs in Math on their staffs to do some of the heavy lifting, but - they knew what they were talking about. You could see it by how they fielded questions. And more importantly, they knew how to make this research fit the real world. I was proud! :)

Made me think of Bucky Pizzarelli and that 7 string guitar from the prior post. No need to stop contributing post-50. There's a heck of a lot that can be taken from the world around you, blended with your experience, and shared back with the world - made better for your engagement with it.

Oh, and speaking of older stuff - a generation ago there was a tradition in this profession of mine. When we held our annual meeting and welcomed new members (always a special occasion), we all recited a pledge of professionalism. It was all about a commitment to integrity, honor, serving the public interest, etc.

We don't do that anymore.

And just this last year... two of our more senior members (one of them a household name to us)... were convicted of securities fraud. Maybe that's just a coincidence? Maybe not.

Anyway there was a piece on it in our professional journal sitting out on the literature tables here, and I noted this commentary on that pledge. I think the comments have application outside my profession. See if you agree:

"A pledge does not and cannot impose commitment. The spoken words of a pledge merely express [existing] commitment and affirm it. If the deep commitment does not already exist, then reciting a pledge full of empty words does, at best, no good at all. When the deep commitment does exist, then reciting the pledge on special occasions can be beneficial to both [those doing the pledging and those hearing the words]."

I think you could say the same for creeds, vows and promises of all sorts. If you don't mean them, don't say them. But if you mean them... even if you've said them before... it's good to say them again. And special occasions - are a great time for it. :)