Joe E. Carter was a hard worker. Simply put, I do not believe anyone that knew my dad would say anything to the contrary. As a young man he farmed, he worked in furniture factories, he tarred roofs, and supported his four brothers, sister, and mother in lieu of the fact that their father left them when dad was in seventh grade. That being the case, he quit school and instead learned the skills he would later use to run his own construction company through the work listed above. I guess you could say Joe E. Carter didn't really quit school, he just enrolled in a much different form of education entitled the school of hard knocks. During his "education" he sustained a life threatening internal injury while working at Morristown Chest, lost a digit off his right hand, survived a recession, and along the way created a construction company that built hundreds of homes in and around Morristown, transitioned to a commercial builder and oversaw the construction of numerous Western Sizzling Steakhouses in Tennessee and other states, built or partnered in a number of business ventures, and throughout his working career Joe E. Carter farmed the land that he loved so much raising livestock, crops, and lush pastureland. During his contractor tenure our dad was named "Builder of the Year" more than once, elected president by the Morristown Home Builders Association, and contributed to or helped start so many of the subdivisions established in the 1970's and 80's in Morristown such as Brockland Acres, Brentwood, Lyn Mar Hills, Hickory Shadows, and Quail Hollow, just to name a few. I believe in most definitions of the word successful Joe E. Carter would fit the bill.
I say all of that to brag on my dad. I have always been proud of him and admired his work ethic from a distance all my life. Our father did obtain a GED diploma and he proudly wore a high school class ring throughout his life. He was prouder of that accomplishment than all of his business accolades. I mentioned the school of hard knocks in the opening of today's FTM, that is where our dad obtained his advanced degrees. His "formal" education came through undesirable life situations, myriad setbacks, stumbles, and what many people would have labelled as failures, but Joe Carter used those experiences as the fodder for success in life.
For several generations, mine included, we have stolen the opportunity to grow through adversity from our children. Joe E. Carter wanted his children to have life better than his was, so he gave us more than we needed, and he didn't ask for much in return. My generation in turn, wanted our kids to know life better than what we had, so we gave our children an overabundance of "things", and began removing any struggles out of the equation. That recurring theme has continued to morph over the last two or three generations until now it is pretty much a sense of entitlement by not only our children, but throughout our systems of government, education, and in everyday life. All with the thought that we want our kids "to have it better than we had it". Good intentions, terrible outcomes.
If we could just stop and look at the lives of those that we consider outstanding leaders throughout history we would find that the struggle is what made them capable of leading the way they led. I have extensively studied the adverse settings surrounding the lives of Abraham Lincoln and Winston Churchill two admirable leaders in their own era of history. In both men's lives the setbacks they endured and the "failures" they persevered made them stronger not weaker and that strength is what they each used to lead when it was time to step up to the plate and lead. I can't calculate the benefit of working through and overcoming adverse situations, but I can tell you that the struggle is definitely what made them stronger and more capable of leading their respective countries through a time of despair that saw both nations crumbling and ready to collapse. No doubt they called on their will to succeed which was bedded in resiliency and a gritty mindset, gained through adversity not entitlement.
All is not lost, but it is time to retrieve that what has been lost. Let us fail, let us make sacrifices, and let us have to try to figure out how to make things work even when they don't end up working. Allow us to come up short and then teach us to be humble and content in whatever state we are currently in at that particular moment. "I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want." Philippians 4:11-12. Let us fight the good fight, stand up, get knocked down and then get back up! Make us to be a nation that relies on God not on man making everything appear to be okay.
God prepares us through our adversity and even in our grief. What appears to be failure is only a lesson in our school of hard knocks education. I dare guess where I would be today if not for the example that Joe E. Carter provided, and I most certainly know where I would be if not for the mercy and grace that Our Savior has shown me through the trials and tribulations of this life. “Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.” Joshua 1:9
Coach Carter
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