Jacob Rudick: Suffer No Fools

My son Jacob has become a sensitive man. He has depth of understanding and little patience for incongruity. Although these are admirable qualities, they did make his time in public school — and his transition to the working world — at times problematic.

Jacob is an exceptional writer. So I remember being surprised one year when he received a low grade in high school English; it was a subject he typically excelled in. When we went to speak with his teacher, I learned that the teacher required students to copy the notes off the blackboard. The teacher considered it a gift to help students raise their grades. Since my son didn’t perceive this requirement as a gift and therefore refused to copy the notes, his grade suffered.

When he started working, Jacob would initially enjoy a job until he came to understand the inconsistency between what the business professed to be and what it actually was. This process took about two months. As a result, he bounced around a lot. Thankfully, he’s now found a job for an organization that has a congruent model. I never worried about him because I knew he was grounded in his ethics.

Like my son, I’ve often experienced the disparity between vision and reality. I hope, for all our sakes, that we can live our lives where vision is reality, both personally and professionally. So I thank you, Jacob, for being true to yourself and for suffering no fools… I love you for your courage in this frightened atmosphere, as the following song explores:

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You Have Lived by Don McClean

You have lived such a gentle life upon this earth
That I am stunned by your sight
If I could give but a token of the love you have
Then I might not be this lonely tonight

Let them have their smug and their cool
Confined by fashion and peer
I love you for your courage in this frightened atmosphere
I love you for your courage in this frightened atmosphere

Oh, there are so few brave ones like you, need I explain?
Never wondering what to do, what to venture, what to gain

And, you have loved in a total way, from flesh to soul
You speak, without coy without pose
Your eyes can see that the emperor has lost his clothes
And what’s more, you’ll tell the whole world what he stole

Let them have their fad and their fix
Confined by fashion and peer
I love you for your courage in this frightened atmosphere
I love you for your courage in this frightened atmosphere

You Have Lived by Don McClean