We Are All Wolves

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A Visit From an Old Friend

During a recent meditation session , a deceased colleague and friend came to mind almost immediately. Bruce, died in 2014 due to cancer, and he was also one of the few people that my 18-year-old daughter Jeannine wanted to see approximately two weeks before she transitioned from the physical world on March 1,2023. Bruce wasn’t in the military, but he had a military mindset, hence his message to me before I gave my daughter’s eulogy: Complete the Mission! Those three words inspired me and gave me the courage to give the most challenging speech in my life.

Bruce and I both worked at an inpatient addictions agency in Upstate New York. He willingly performed my team manager duties one day a week throughout most of 2002, so I could complete the requirements for my master’s in social work degree. My master’s degree was a gateway to what I love doing today: teaching undergraduate college students.

When Bruce came to mind during my meditation, I immediately expressed gratitude for both his professional and personal support, as well as his friendship. At that moment, I heard in my head : We are all wolves.

Pathfinders

Immediately following meditation , I pondered the significance of what I heard. According to Jamie Sams and David Carson: The wolf is the pathfinder, the forerunner of new ideas who returns to the clan to teach and share medicine. Bruce was the ultimate wolf. Our many conversations about leadership and accountability, helped me become a better team leader. As a teacher myself, I resonate with wolf, typically calling in their energy before I enter the classroom or present a workshop nationally or in my community. But is teaching only limited to those who do it for a living or who are ascribed that status in their culture or spiritual communities?

When The Student Becomes The Teacher

Photo by Mimi Thian on Unsplash

I have been an adjunct professor at Utica University for over 23 years. One of the messages that I consistently share in my classes, is that within every student, lies a great teacher and within every teacher, lies a great student. My teaching methods have evolved over the years in part, because of my ongoing desire for self-improvement. They have also evolved because of the constructive feedback I have received throughout the years, from my students. My students, like the wolf have been pathfinders , helping me discover new ways of engaging my classes and becoming a more effective educator.

I believe the classroom experience is more effective if teaching occurs from everyone in that setting. I typically tell my students that I don’t know everything, but together we can come close. I try to empower them to find and embrace the teacher that lies within. As learners, I invite them to question and to challenge perspectives that are different from their own. The only request I make is that they do it respectfully and listen without judgment. In that sense they may find similarities among difference and in the process, enhance their critical thinking skills. What is learned from those interactions can be used to teach and inspire others from all walks of life. The empowerment that comes from our ability to safely share different perspectives can create communities built on diversity of thought.

Final Thoughts

Though I value a collaborative, classroom community approach to learning, not every student takes advantage of it. I have often pondered why that may be the case, and after much reflection here are a couple of possible explanations:

•The illusion that they have nothing of value to offer someone else: By virtue of our existence, we have something of value to offer others. To quote the late Debbie Ford: We are the microcosm of the macrocosm. We contain every thought and emotion known to humankind .By mirroring those qualities simply through our actions, we can make others aware of issues or aspects of themselves they have kept hidden. So, through example, we can teach without saying a word.

•Past history: I often tell my students that I am not aware of the challenges they are facing outside of the classroom. If they come from homes where the messages they received are that they are less than, they may be unwilling to share due to fears of being judged as not worthy. If they had past experiences in the classroom where questions were not allowed , they may feel their voice doesn’t matter. As educators we need to continually plant the seed that their voice does matter, that they are worthy and capable of being great teachers as well as students. That there is no limitation, just untapped potential.

We are all wolves. We all have unique gifts that can allow our inner teacher to surface. Self-insight can only teach us so much, we need others to be a mirror to help us grow and evolve into impactful human beings. And in turn we need to be mirrors to our teachers, to help them grow and evolve into impactful human beings as well.

We are islands to each other, building hopeful bridges on the troubled sea- Neil Peart