By TJ Ray

Columnist

 

I bet that anyone who uses a computer regularly probably sees dozens of quotes or sayings. Often the sheer number of addresses in the header will reveal how popular a saying is.  

Most of the time, readers simply read the words and delete the file.  But ever so often, an unsolicited email will carry real treasure.  Let me describe one that’s been around my screen a number of times.  

Each time, I reread the words though I have them memorized by now.

Along with the words are images of pencils.  The piece is titled Four Kinds of People.

The first assertion says:  “Those who are average.”  The point of the pencil is sharp and there is the usual eraser at its other end.

The second note says:  “Those who never make mistakes.”  Both ends of the illustrative pencil are sharpened.

The third claim notes:  “Those who make nothing but misteaks.”  This pencil has an eraser on both ends.

The last words announce:  “Those who don’t do anything.”  Both ends of this pencil are without eraser or point.

Now look around your mind and match folks you know with the four types of pencils.  I take the first sort to be the people we come across often, speak to politely and have no further curiosity about their lives. 

We assume that life is running smoothly for them, their spouses are good mates, and their children don’t get expelled from school or make the honor roll.  When these folks come to their obituary column, we usually read the words about them even though our only knowledge of their lives is that we’ve seen them around.

Do you know folks who never make mistakes?   

In this group I squeeze the people I come across who are engaged in many, many facets of life.  They have jobs.  They are married with a child or two.  They participate in public goings-on.  Their spot in their final announcement will be unusually long as they will have done many things.  And along the way, they’ve quite likely impressed their compatriots.

Ah, there are those who walk among us who stumble through life, making “misteak” after “misteak.”  

Being audited by the IRS.  Getting fired from jobs because they were inept or just plain lazy.  If they ever need an attorney, it is likely they will wind up with a shyster who scams them of what little they have.  They usually avoid public involvement, but when they dare join a group their gaffes will ensure their never being chosen to lead.

Sadly, the folks who don’t do anything move among us, offering no opinion of current events, never present at a public forum.  The editor who writes their obituary will have to scramble to find something to say about them other than their birth and death dates.  

To paraphrase Julius Caesar, “They came, they filled space, they departed.”

Am I right in thinking that you have had a particular individual in mind as you read this piece?  Be nice to them anyway!  More enlightening, perhaps, is for you to measure yourself against these standards.  How do you think folks perceive you as a friend, colleague, or citizen?