Are You Ready for Act Two?

The date is June 24, 1859. Suddenly, there he is, atop a hill overlooking the plain of Solferino. The troops of Napoleon III (Louis Napoleon) prepare for battle with the Austrians below, and Henri Dunant has a box-seat view from his place on the hill. Trumpets blare, muskets crack and cannons boom. The two armies crash into each other, as Henri looks on, transfixed. He sees the dust rising. He hears the screams of the injured. He watches bleeding, maimed men take their last breaths as he stares in horror at the scene below. Henri doesn’t mean to be there. He is only on a business trip – to speak to Louis Napoleon about a financial transaction between the Swiss and the French. But he arrived late and now finds himself in a position to witness first-hand the atrocities of war. What Henri sees from his hill, however, pales in comparison with what he is soon to witness. Entering a small town shortly after the fierce encounter, Henri now observes the battle’s refugees. Every building is filled with the mangled, the injured, the dead. Henri, aching with pity, decides to stay in the village three more days to comfort the young soldiers. He realizes that his life will never be the same again. Driven by a powerful passion to abolish war, Henri Dunant will eventually lose his successful banking career and all his worldly possessions only to die as a virtual unknown in an obscure poorhouse. But we remember Henri today because the Swiss humanitarian and activist was the first recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (in 1901). We also remember him because he took his country’s flag, a white cross on a red background, reversed the colors and founded what was to become a worldwide movement – the Red Cross. Act One of Henri Dunant’s life closed June 24, 1859. Act Two opened immediately and played the remainder of his 81 years. Many people’s lives can be divided into Act One and Act Two. The first performance ends when one decides to ultimately follow a new direction or passion. Henri’s old life, driven by financial success, prestige and power, no longer satisfied. A new Henri Dunant emerged in Act Two; one who was motivated by love, compassion and an overriding commitment to abolish the horrors of war. For many people like Henri, Act Two begins with a defining moment - it may be an experience, an important insight or perhaps even a rite of passage, such as a birthday. However it comes about, Act Two begins when the “old self” is laid to rest and a new self is born. At its best, this new self is one governed by different priorities and a renewed passion to live differently.  Act One might be closing in your life. If so, are you ready for Act Two? Something exciting may be about to begin.

-- Steve Goodier

Image: Flickr.com/Sarah Stierch

About Conversion

Image coutesy of Juliane Riedl

It has been said, “Be contented with what you have, but never too contented with what you are.”

There is a story that comes out of Asia about a farmer who saw a tiger’s tail swishing between two large rocks. In a moment of haste, he grabbed the tail and pulled. All of a sudden he realized he had an angry tiger by the tail and only two rocks stood between him and the tiger’s teeth and claws! So there he remained, afraid to loosen his grip on the enraged animal’s tail lest he surely be killed.

A monk happened by and the farmer called out in desperation, “Come over here and help me kill this tiger.”

The holy man said, “Oh, no. I cannot do that. I cannot take the life of another.” Then he went on to deliver a homily against killing. All the while, the farmer was holding tightly to the tail of an angry tiger.

When the monk finally finished his sermon, the farmer pleaded, “If you won’t kill the tiger, then at least come hold its tail while I kill it.”

The monk thought that perhaps it would be all right to simply hold the tiger’s tail, so he grabbed hold and pulled. The farmer, however, turned and walked away down the road.

The monk shouted after him, “Come back here and kill the tiger!”

“Oh, no,” the farmer replied. “You have converted me!”

What is conversion? It is change. With money, conversion can be the change of a bill into coin or the change of currency from one country into that of another. On the human level, conversion can be a change in beliefs, a change in ideas, a change in attitudes, a change in behaviors or even a change in priorities. To say, “I’m a changed person!” is to say you have somehow been converted.

There are two things I’ve learned about conversion and change. The first is that conversion is not a bad thing. To say you’ve been converted to something does not make you a fanatic. It means you’ve changed your mind or your outlook. If the largest room in the world is “room for improvement,” then it is good to leave plenty of room for change.

And that’s the second thing I’ve learned about conversion – it’s an ongoing process. I always want to leave room for change, room to keep growing. To say, “I’ve been converted and that’s that,” is to say you have decided to quit growing. If life is about anything, it is about growing. The day I quit changing and learning is the day I die.

I like the old southern American slave’s prayer: “I ain’t what I ought to be and I ain’t what I’m agoin’ to be. But I give thanks that I ain’t what I used to be.” Change, for him, has been a good thing and it’s not over yet. Here is a person whose life is like an on-going journey. He is always growing. Always changing. Always becoming. And always aware there’s a little more room for improvement.

Is there a better way to live?

-- Steve Goodier

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