"The true meaning of life is to plant trees, under whose shade you do not expect to sit."
:— Nelson Henderson, professional rugby player (1865–1943)
Our Society is engaged in a business not measured in days and weeks. Not even in months and years. Ours is the business of decades, perhaps of centuries.
"Think so big that you can't do it alone, so big you can't do it this year, this decade or even in your lifetime. Have a dream worth dreaming."
:— Bobb Biehl, executive mentor (fl.1976–2013)
What then shall we do? What big dreams shall we pursue? Where should we invest our not insubstantial resources and large but finite energies?
"Don’t do anything that others can do or will do when there is so much of importance to be done that others cannot or will not do."
:— Dawson Trotman, evangelist (1906–1956)
Well then, “What is it that only The Augustan Society can do? What is it that only The Augustan Society will do? And what can The Augustan Society do better than anyone else?”
"Technology is for the purpose of us. We are not for the purpose of technology."
:— Tara Calishain, author and ResearchBuzz blogger (b.1970)
Our web sites are and will continue to be an ever more important part of our operations, especially as we reach out toward our potential as an international society. And by “web sites”, I mean to include mobile versions, Facebook, Linked-In, and any number of social networking systems and technologies not yet touched upon or perhaps yet invented. But these must be utilized in support of our programs, not as ends in themselves.
"Do not let yourselves be discouraged or embittered by the smallness of the success you are likely to achieve in trying to make life better. ... But, if you make life ever so little better, you will have done splendidly, and your lives will have been worthwhile."
:— Arnold Toynbee, economic historian and social activist (1852–1883)
Should we be ashamed of what little we have done? Is the recent history of The Augustan Society one of bitterly small successes?
"You got to be very careful if you don’t know where you’re going, because you might not get there."
:— Yogi Berra, baseball manger and serial language abuser (1925-2015)
Despite all this good work, I find myself increasingly disturbed by the lack of [[Planning|long-range planning]] in our organization. Indeed, I am disturbed by the lack of ''interest'' in long-range planning, or even short-range planning. For example, it is now late August, and we haven’t even begun work on next year’s [[Budget]], despite needing to mail out renewal reminders in less than six weeks.
"To equal a predecessor, one must have twice their worth."
:— Baltasar Gracian, Jesuit writer and philosopher (1601–1658)
It is good to remember that I am not Rodney. I would think this patently obvious, but there are some in Society office who seem to think I am. They are surprised when I lack some essential skill, or when I resist accepting additional duties when I cannot keep up with those already assigned. Perhaps my self-imposed limit of working only 20 hours/week for the Society (at less than a nickel per hour) disappoints them.
"Engineers like to solve problems. If there are no problems handily available, they will create their own problems."
:— Scott Adams, cartoonist and author (b. 1947)
I am an engineer by training and inclination. Some Directors have complained that I am always coming up with new ideas, creating new problems, and obliging the Board or Committee Chairmen to deal with them. This is not only my nature, but also my job as I understand it. I must advise all to get used to it, or get someone else!
"Never, for the sake of peace and quiet, deny your own experience or convictions."
:— Dag Hammarskjold, Swedish diplomat (1905–1961)
Those who know me well are all too aware that I do not place much value on peace and quiet in the face of unmet needs. If I raise a ruckus at times, if I insist on addressing some issue of no obvious importance, if you find me as demanding as your own conscience, know that I do so not without an awareness that it occasionally costs me friends, respect, and large quantities of my time.
"Regret for the things we did can be tempered by time; it is regret for the things we did not do that is inconsolable."
:— Sidney J. Harris, journalist and scholar (1917–1986)
Let me close by offering just one, deceptively simple challenge: That we strive to conduct ourselves and our Society in such way that we shall never be obliged to regret the things we did not try to do.