The Quiet Leader

Weekly wisdom to level up your creative life in 3 minutes, for free.

A SHORT STORY

Let me tell you a story about a boy named Simon.

I remember meeting Simon in the Dadaab Refugee Camp, in the Save the Children “Child Friendly Spaces,” and immediately remarking to myself, “That kid Simon, he’s a leader.”

I remember how he wore a striped polo shirt that was ripped down the sleeve. I remember how he enjoyed drumming and was a natural-born leader.

As we organized the children, he always helped us lead by drumming the beat on the sidelines.

Simon had four sisters, one mother, and no father. When you interacted with him, you sensed a soul that was wise beyond his years.

He did not talk much. His interactions were small, simple, and authentic.

I remember how I wrote about him in my journal and wept.

How could such love and beauty be faced with so much hardship, I wondered? And in the face of it, stand up straight and walk forward with dignity?

Reflecting now, I hope Simon is thriving as a leader somewhere in the world.

I think about him often and the effect certain individuals have on our lives, the seeds they plant in you that continue to grow long after they are gone.

I wish I could find an adult Simon now, and tell him how much his presence meant to me.

I wish I could remind him how powerful he is as a leader.

Who is someone in your life that is powerful? How can you reflect their power back at them today?

A CREATIVE TOOL

In a few weeks, I’m going to have the chance to interview the artist Hafftka.

I was inspired to meet him after I read another post by Claire Silver describing his “unbridled, childlike joy using AI”.

It was such a potent reminder of how powerful it is to approach your work with enthusiasm. What a potent tool it is to observe the world with childlike wonder.

A PIECE OF ART

“Thanks” by W.S. Merwin

Listen
with the night falling we are saying thank you
we are stopping on the bridges to bow from the railings
we are running out of the glass rooms
with our mouths full of food to look at the sky
and say thank you
we are standing by the water thanking it
standing by the windows looking out
in our directions

back from a series of hospitals back from a mugging
after funerals we are saying thank you
after the news of the dead
whether or not we knew them we are saying thank you

over telephones we are saying thank you
in doorways and in the backs of cars and in elevators
remembering wars and the police at the door
and the beatings on stairs we are saying thank you
in the banks we are saying thank you
in the faces of the officials and the rich
and of all who will never change
we go on saying thank you thank you

with the animals dying around us
our lost feelings we are saying thank you
with the forests falling faster than the minutes
of our lives we are saying thank you
with the words going out like cells of a brain
with the cities growing over us
we are saying thank you faster and faster
with nobody listening we are saying thank you
we are saying thank you and waving
dark though it is

Grateful,

Michael