I know this couple here in Amarillo. They’ve been active in civic and community affairs for a very long time.
They’re both natives of the city and I am totally convinced they love it with all their heart.
They sent me a short blog, which I have attached to this post:
http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2015/05/a-fool-in-front-of-the-crowd-is-an-inevitable-side-effect-of-work-that-matters.html
It seems to speak directly to the skeptics who harbor thoughts of some conspiracy lurking in the minds of those who have cobbled together a grand vision for the future of Amarillo.
Here’s what it says. I attached the link so you might want to look at more items on the blog to try to size up the fellow who wrote these words.
“When you do work that matters, the crowd will call you a fool.
“If you do something remarkable, something new and something important, not everyone will understand it (at first). Your work is for someone, not everyone.
“Unless you’reĀ surrounded only by someones, you will almost certainly encounter everyone. And when you do, they will jeer.
“That’s how you’ll know you might be onto something.”
I think the author of this post is suggesting — while obviously not speaking to our local circumstance directly — that the vision being considered for Amarillo’s downtown goes perhaps a step or two too far for some of us to grasp immediately.
Do I grasp it? Hardly. I’m just anxious to see what develops.
We’ve heard some “jeering” lately from those who think the city is hiding something. They seem to think there’s more “there there,” to borrow a portion of a phrase from Gertrude Stein.
I will continue to hope for the best as the city moves forward with development plans they hope will transform the city’s central business district into something we don’t yet recognize.
However, I strongly suspect we’ll know we’ve found it the moment weĀ see it.