Monday, July 31, 2006
Oh, Captain! My Captain!
Here’s a story of how the formative years of an individual can affect that person’s future goals and legacy:
Once upon a time, there was a young army captain who had a desk job. He was what is referred today as a “pencil-pusher” or “desk jockey”. Like many desk jockeys, he was bored with his position and was looking to do something adventurous. Afterall, he had graduated at the top of his class at the military academy, so shouldn’t he have a chance to prove himself?
The normal path for an adventurous officer such as he would be in combat, but the war was over and the young captain didn’t get the opportunity to be in conflict. In fact, he was stationed close to home. So, what is there for him to do?
Then, the army was looking for observers for a project concerning national defense. A motor convoy of military vehicles was to travel cross-country along the nation’s roads and to report on their conditions and their effects on the vehicles. When, the pencil-pushing captain heard of this, he jumped at the chance to join.
So, off he went with 81 army vehicles from trucks to tanks to cars along with almost 300 officers and men. They started east along paved roads. So far, so good. Then, as they went westward, they found that many of the roads shown on maps were not paved. Even worse, some were non-existent!
Still, they sallied forth, since they were all soldiers and they had a duty to fulfill. If a bridge had to be crossed, it was crossed, even if it was wooden and wasn’t able to withstand the weight of their trucks. Some of the vehicles turned over or fell into ditches. Our captain and others asked the same question: “Is there a better way of doing this?” Nevertheless, they made slow, but steady progress.
Finally, after 62 days, the convoy made it to their destination, and the young captain took a lesson with him that helped him later in life. You see, the young captain was Dwight Eisenhower. The convoy in which he participated was the Transcontinental Motor Convoy of 1919. The lesson that young Eisenhower learned while on the road was the need for a national highway system. When he became President, he provided just that on June 29, 1956 – fifty years ago last month.
This is now known as the Eisenhower Interstate Highway System. Many of us use it every day. Personally, I have a love-hate relationship with it, as do many others. Still, this story of Eisenhower’s formative years as an observer on this convoy fascinates me because he actually had the opportunity to finding that “better way” he had observed many years ago. This gives hope for all of us, including not a few desk jockeys out there!
Once upon a time, there was a young army captain who had a desk job. He was what is referred today as a “pencil-pusher” or “desk jockey”. Like many desk jockeys, he was bored with his position and was looking to do something adventurous. Afterall, he had graduated at the top of his class at the military academy, so shouldn’t he have a chance to prove himself?
The normal path for an adventurous officer such as he would be in combat, but the war was over and the young captain didn’t get the opportunity to be in conflict. In fact, he was stationed close to home. So, what is there for him to do?
Then, the army was looking for observers for a project concerning national defense. A motor convoy of military vehicles was to travel cross-country along the nation’s roads and to report on their conditions and their effects on the vehicles. When, the pencil-pushing captain heard of this, he jumped at the chance to join.
So, off he went with 81 army vehicles from trucks to tanks to cars along with almost 300 officers and men. They started east along paved roads. So far, so good. Then, as they went westward, they found that many of the roads shown on maps were not paved. Even worse, some were non-existent!
Still, they sallied forth, since they were all soldiers and they had a duty to fulfill. If a bridge had to be crossed, it was crossed, even if it was wooden and wasn’t able to withstand the weight of their trucks. Some of the vehicles turned over or fell into ditches. Our captain and others asked the same question: “Is there a better way of doing this?” Nevertheless, they made slow, but steady progress.
Finally, after 62 days, the convoy made it to their destination, and the young captain took a lesson with him that helped him later in life. You see, the young captain was Dwight Eisenhower. The convoy in which he participated was the Transcontinental Motor Convoy of 1919. The lesson that young Eisenhower learned while on the road was the need for a national highway system. When he became President, he provided just that on June 29, 1956 – fifty years ago last month.
This is now known as the Eisenhower Interstate Highway System. Many of us use it every day. Personally, I have a love-hate relationship with it, as do many others. Still, this story of Eisenhower’s formative years as an observer on this convoy fascinates me because he actually had the opportunity to finding that “better way” he had observed many years ago. This gives hope for all of us, including not a few desk jockeys out there!
