Literacy and Leadership

A few short remarks to be given at the Sigma Kappa Delta, Psi Alpha Chapter Pinning Ceremony, May 2nd 2024, Odessa College, 6:30 pm.

"To thine own self be true," says Polonius, and viewers of Hamlet might think it terrible advice. Polonius gets stabbed behind a curtain because he's spying on Hamlet. He seems obsessed with the micromanaging that comes from being the King's chief minister.

I'm not so sure it is terrible advice. It is moralistic and a bit too non-descript. "To thine own self be true." Well, what if your true self is a serial killer? When, exactly, do these words work?

That's where we step in. Sigma Kappa Delta, Psi Alpha Chapter. That's where literacy at a deeper level matters. So many want to believe that if they do X, they'll receive reward Y. They want to pass tests to get the degree, they want a few skills. There's a lot of effort involved. There's a lot of thinking as problem-solving. But does that even begin to address the larger issues? We can make those around us proud; this is, without a doubt, important and good. Will it stop oil wells from leaking so much produced water that a 60 acre lake of pure pollution sits outside Pecos? Will it give the next generation breathable air? Will it allow others to express themselves, to begin to feel free? Do we have anything serious to say to those younger than us?

"To thine own self be true" – if you take the time to write what's happening to you, if you take the time to read what others go through, you find yourself, you find your truth. Not someone else's, but at the same time, not defined by conscious or subconscious selfishness. It's so important to build who you are, to think about what matters, to lead because you must learn to follow and follow because you must learn to lead. There's a way of reading life that doesn't always involve books. But books are one way of hearing what the ancestors have to say. It is a credit to SKD that this does not need to be explained, only mentioned. The work of building ourselves and each other continues.