What is respect?  It is a powerful trait that is worth striving for. It is not given lightly rather it is earned.

We hear young men who carry guns say they do it to gain respect.  They are right, we respect the gun, you are still an idiot for thinking you gained the respect by flashing it around.

I have thought hard about this subject and have had many thoughts about those who I believe gained respect and I will share one with you.

As I might have mentioned I grew up in a small town.  My Dad was a school teacher and specifically in Industrial Arts.  The shop he taught out of was located in the basement of our old high school. He taught many subjects such as woodworking and carpentry, electrical, plumbing, metal works, automotive, and even aviation to name a few. In our school at the time, there were two tracks offered to us either college-bound or the trades.  Many of those who selected the trades for different reasons were entrusted to my Dad for their educational experience.  He took this responsibility very seriously which is why he went into teaching.

Now across the hall in the basement was located the music department.  They too had a teacher very dedicated to his pupils.  He taught a variety of instruments to those willing to learn.  And for those who accomplished some success, there was a junior orchestra which led to a senior orchestra, a marching band, and other ensembles to meet different tastes.  He too took pride in his work and influenced many. I was one.

I don’t know who designed the high school and why they thought it was a good idea to put the music department across the hall from the shop but I guess it was because they were both a part of the “arts” category, music being one of the arts and shop of the Industrial “Arts”! Actually, at times the sound resonating from the music department sounded like the shop and vice versa!  Sound can be deceiving!

Walking the hall separating the music room and shop, past the racks of wood storage for the shop, and down more steps, you entered the boiler room which supplied heat for the whole school and its three stories above.

As a very young child when I went to wait for my father to go home, I would wander down the hall to talk to my friend Mr. Bradly. I would sit on the metal steps and he would enlighten me with stories and advice as he shoveled coal into the big furnace. (Later they converted the boilers to oil-fired) I said I was very young at the time. 

As part of his responsibility, he was the maintenance custodian of the school.  He cared for the halls and classrooms making them spotless and in order so the condition for teaching education there would be no distractions. 

He dressed in an unusual way for a man of his occupation in retrospect.  I remember him in dark-colored trousers with suspenders over his white shirt with a bow tie.  Similarly dressed as teachers in the school.  He took his responsibility very seriously and did it to the best of his ability.

Now, these three men were of different faith and skin color.  I mention this only because of the lack of meaning these traits had to the relationship they had with each other. These men who worked in the basement cared for one another, enjoyed their company, and most importantly treated each other with respect.

I have emphasized the fact they had worked in the basement as a basement is usually the foundation of a structure.  These men, notwithstanding their differences, had in their own way formed the foundation of this school.  The shop students made the stage sets for the drama clubs.  They built and attached the stands for many Christmas trees that decorated the different rooms and halls for the holiday.  They contributed man tasks they were called upon by those less trained willingly.

The music department entertained in many musical productions and offered the sound necessary to make a march with floats a march down Broadway.

Last but not least the school was kept warm on many cold days and maintained behind the scene as expected but with little regard.  You see they were the foundation.

But here is the bottom line.  They did not get paid much yet many regard them as making a difference in their lives.  When they walked down the street others would greet them with pride in that they were recognized by them.  They were just doing their jobs and because they did them so well, they garnered respect that they surely deserved.  They earned it.