Where Do We Look For a Role Model?

We have become a very interesting and indulgent society. We pay huge sums of money to be entertained by individuals who are often outlandish, bizarre and sometimes rude and surly. We sometimes accept behavior in celebrities that we would never condone from those we associate with. Why is this, do you suppose? Very few of us actually know the people that fill the headlines in the newspapers or the screens at the movie theaters. We can become familiar with their work, their talents and because of the media overload we are subject to, their failings. We can become disappointed when they do not live up to the standards we have unwittingly set for them, when we feel they have let us down. For the most part, it is not us they have failed, it is themselves. We can appreciate people for their great and unique abilities without holding them up as a role model for appropriate behavior. So often, those very qualities do not seem to reside in the same bodies.

The recent scandal over Tiger Woods might be an example of this phenomenon. Yes, Tiger Woods is an amazingly gifted golfer. He also appeared to be a dedicated and devoted family man and his recent failures seemed to shake a lot of people who looked up to him. Tiger Woods might be a great model to try to emulate on the golf course but obviously not such a good one to look to for good behavior. When the Augusta National Golf Association Club chairman, Billy Payne, slammed Tiger just prior to his first outing back to the sport, for failing to be the role model for our children, he was off base. Sports heroes are typically not the best place to look at for role models. Certainly, there most be a good many people who excel at sports (or any thing for that matter) that happen to be wonderful human beings. It is that last part of the their description that bears emulation, the "wonderful" part, not so much the "excellent" part.

When you look for a role model, perhaps a better place to look would be toward those who spend their lives working for the good of others rather than themselves, to those who sacrifice on a daily basis to provide for those who count on them, to those who you know will not let you down and disappoint you. There are role models all around if we just take the time to look. With very few exceptions, you will not see their faces on the television screen or in the newspapers. Chances are pretty good they are in much closer proximity to you than you might think. Look around.