All I Really Needed to Know...

I wrote a tribute to the maintenance guys here on campus and published it for them in a little photo book. Here's the condensed version:

All I Really Needed to Know at Seminary I Learned in Maintenance

Most of what I really need to to know at seminary
about how to live and what to do and how to be
I learned in maintenance.
Wisdom was not at the top of some
graduate school mountain,
but there in the shop on campus.

These are the things I learned:
Share the golf cart.
Play when the boss isn't looking.
Put things back where you found them (or Jeff won't like it).
Don't hit gas condensers (or anything else) with the scissor lift.
Clean your own mess.

Don't ask for permission; ask for forgiveness.
Don't take things that aren't yours.
Pray (for no leaks) without ceasing.

Say you're sorry when you break down the Steiner
...and the Deere...and the golf cart.
A day on the Steiner is good for the soul.
"Opportunity is often missed because
it's dressed in overalls and looks like work." -Thomas Edison

Wash your hands before you eat.
Meat and potatoes are good for you.

Flush.
Live a balanced life.
Learn some and think some,
and paint and paint and paint
and play and work everyday some.
Take a nap every afternoon (just don't get caught).
When you go out into the world
watch for skunks.
Hold ladders and spot one another.
Always stick to the buddy system.

Be aware of heights and sharp objects.

Written by yours truly; inspired by and borrowed from the original poem by Robert Fulghum.