While the line “From whence doth the power descend” might sound a bit like a scripture verse uttered from a pulpit positioned on the path around the Falls, it was repeated several times Saturday night in much more common language. The satellite image of northeastern Wisconsin had a blanket of dark spots where individuals and businesses hooked up to the power grid through Wisconsin Public Service.
Coming at just after 9:30 p.m., the impact varied from consumer to consumer. For some it was a minor inconvenience and translated into an early turn-in for the night without watching the 10 o’clock news. For others, it was something quite different, depending on the personal agenda.
In the case of this observer, the day’s agenda was not the typical Saturday format. Some months previous to that Saturday, the date had been selected as the schedule for a personal nuptial event. Many factors go into the process of selecting the date for such an event, but one of the more significant factors is whether or not the Holiday Inn at Kelly Lake is available to hold the reception.
Many brides-to-be have dreams of the perfect wedding day with a number of factors going into the decision. There are questions about just the right dress and the person with whom to tie the knot, but right up there at the top of the list is whether Romy’s venue is available.
Once that date for the event was penciled in, this particular bride-to-be went about working on the other details. Music to dance by was a critical piece of the formula for that wedding of her dreams. Little did she know when she put together the play list of songs for the night, “The Nights the Lights Went out in Georgia … Kelly Lake” would be included, along with Eric Clapton and everyone else “Unplugged.”
The band members were real troupers and went acoustic with an accordion and strings under the light of smart phones. The change of atmosphere was unexpected but made for a night to remember, even if there was no mirror ball twirling above the dance floor at that point.
Debriefing the next day led to the understanding that those patrons served by Wisconsin Public Service were affected, while neighbors served by Oconto Electric Cooperative were seeing the light of day, or at least lights in the evening. That night it was apparent that where the power comes from does make a difference.
The ceremony early that afternoon took place at the Klondike Community Church, which was a beautiful setting, especially after the restoration that followed a fire, a hot point in the church’s history. The message from the individual presiding over the ceremony mentioned power in the new relationship and the idea that there needed to be sharing without losing one’s individuality. One needs to be careful with power.
One can reflect on the concept of power in a variety of settings, not the least of which is an individual in a leadership position, whether that position is in the field of education or some other field. Many of the roles in education leadership have particular titles; one of the more important is that of superintendent of schools.
In Wisconsin, like many other states, there are specific powers that Wisconsin statutes and school board policies give to the person in that role. This can be called power of position. It’s automatic and comes with the title.
There is another kind of power that might be called “earned power.” It comes with time and as a result of the way the person in that role operates. People often take a “wait and see” attitude when someone steps into that role.
Of the two types of power, in this observer’s humble opinion, earned power is the more powerful of the two. Being heavy handed with the use of power of position can backfire with reduced levels of earned power. Over the years this observer has been extremely cautious about using the title and the position to push people in one direction or another. One of the most effective styles of leadership is to come up with an idea and work with others so that they think it is their idea. That does not come without time and effort.
One of the best pieces of advice is that you cannot straighten teeth with a sledgehammer. Sledgehammers don’t do much to fix the lights either.
