COMMENTARY >> Actions speak louder than words

By Lt. Col. Reginald McDonald
314th Logistics Readiness Squadron

How many times have we heard the adage “actions speak louder than words?” What does that mean to you? Basically, it all comes down to what we truly believe. We’ve all had examples of co-workers, friends, supervisors, etc., giving us advice on issues such as getting our education, setting a good example, keeping our finances in order and many other things. Again, we won’t act unless we believe in what we are doing or what they are saying. Sometimes we even “say” we believe something without even thinking what it truly means.

This became crystal clear to me when I recently read a true story about a young man who followed the career of a particular acrobat. Fortunately for this young man, the acrobat was coming to a nearby town and the young man could hardly wait to see him perform. One of the tricks involved the acrobat riding a bicycle across at tightrope that was stretched over a rushing waterfall. The acrobat went back and forth on the rope multiple times on his bicycle while carrying different items in the bicycle basket: another acrobat, a puppy and just about everything in between.

Once the show was complete, the young man saw his opportunity to meet one of his heroes. He was able to get an autograph and tell the acrobat how awesome the show was, in particular, riding the bike above the waterfall. The acrobat asked him, “Do you think I can do it again?” The young man enthusiastically said, “Of course!!” The acrobat said, “You don’t really believe I can, do you?” After a few exchanges of this, the young man got somewhat frustrated and then said, “I saw you do it multiple times; of course I believe you can go across again!” That is when the acrobat kindly said, “Then, get in the basket.” The moment of truth had arrived.

In our profession, we face this in many ways. Our team must believe in the great mission of our Air Force and our mission at Team Little Rock. However, we must show that trust in the mission by “getting in the basket” whether that is taking the time to visit one of our sick Airmen in the hospital, going on deployments, changing family plans to enable us to help one of our own who is in need or a myriad of other challenges. I see that happening and your fellow Airmen see it, too. Without taking action, we’re sitting on the sidelines and watching, hoping someone else will carry the load. The fantastic thing about “getting in the basket” is that we will be able to enjoy the adventure, overcome some of our fears and eventually help a fellow Airman “get across the waterfall” in the future as well.