Before Spring Break we were assigned to really think about what makes a leader. To display our learning and understanding of the definition of ‘leader’ we were given a small project, called “Who’s At My Table”.
The mini assignment consisted of each of us choosing five ‘seats’ at our ‘table’. Not metaphorically speaking, the seats were our role models and our table was basically our life. We would write a paragraph for each of these people explaining why they were given a seat, and had to include an image. The seat could belong to any person, living or dead, fictional or a form of reality. The possibilities were endless.
Personally, I knew who three of the seats belonged to right off the bat. For starters, my absolute inspiration, Katherine Johnson would obviously have a place. My dad was another no brainer, and so was Bill Gates. It took a little bit of thought to bring the other two (or three, I guess, because I included Melina Gates with her husband) but I ended up coming up with two more places for Ed Sheeran and Mark Watney.
As far as paragraphs go, I really didn’t have to do any research. I already knew exactly why each of these people inspired me to be a leader within my community every single day. I think the paragraphs I wrote displayed exactly why I looked up to them.
First off, I chose Katherine Johnson because not only was she absolutely intelligent, she was a powerful advocate for civil and woman’s rights. I’ve read and watched “Hidden Figures” so many times, and the scene from the library with her son will never fail to cause goosebumps on my arms. She never quit her dream, and she never let bullies stand in her way.
I then of course chose my dad. My dad is one of the most dedicated people I know. He runs two companies and also works as a geotechnical engineer, but he never fails to be at all of my brothers and my events. He seems to know the answer to anything that I could ever ask, and he’s super smart. My dad puts my family before himself all the time and he is super selfless and overall just an awesome role model.
Bill and Melinda gates became two of my new inspirations as soon as we entered the foundations doors back in Seattle. Many people would say that they were an inspiration because they have so much money, but I think it’s more about what they’re using their money for. The Gates donate millions of dollars towards worldwide issues, from sickness to outdated libraries. They are the most selfless and generous people I know of, and they inspire me everyday to do something good.
A fictional astronaut was next in line. Mark Watney, who is yes, a work of fiction, is still an inspiration to me. Let alone surviving on Mars by himself against all odds, Watney never gave up and he scienced himself out of many problems. Come on, the guy grew potatoes on Mars. He’s pretty cool. That aside, he was just super awesome and a pretty good botanist.
Last but not least, was our boy, Ed Sheeran. If you love to write or just love poetry, you probably love him too. Ed Sheeran is a singer songwriter, but the reason he inspires me is because he is just a normal guy, even though his profession makes him pretty famous. He’s stayed genuine throughout his years of fame, and always writes the most amazing songs. Listen close to the lyrics, you’ll get what I’m saying.
In the end, my table ended up seating five very diverse characters, to say the least. A physicist/mathematician/civil rights advocate/woman’s rights role model, father and company owner, the leaders of a worldwide charity, a musician and a fictional astronaut/botanist. For some reason, I feel like if this was a real table at a restaurant there would be some very interesting conversations going on. I think my dad and Ed Sheeran would surprisingly hit it off, and Mark Watney would definitely be able to talk to Katherine Johnson about why calculating extra weight for soil and more potatoes onto the Hermes mission would’ve been a great idea. Needless to say, they were all very different people.
Overall, I really did enjoy this assignment. It allowed me to sit back and think about the people who make me who I am and inspire me everyday to be awesome.
If you’d like to view each of my paragraphs, read on.
Katherine Johnson
In 1939, being selected as one of three students to enrol at an all white university would make a mark as one of ones proudest life moments, but for Katherine Johnson, it was just one of her many life achievements that makes her one of my role models. Katherine is an inspiration for civil rights and women’s rights, as well as one of NASA’s brilliant women mathematicians. After studying math at West Virginia University, Johnson was hired by NACA in Langley to analyze data. In 1953, her husband died and she was a single mother to three girls, however she still worked full time at NACA. When the Soviet Union launched their satellite in 1957, Johnson provided some of the math for various lectures at NASA, as well as math for the Freedom 7 and Apollo 11. What put her name and women on the map for coauthoring calculation reports was when she cowrote “Determination of Azimuth Angle at Burnout for Placing a Satellite Over a Selected Earth Position”. This report was the first time women had received credit for writing reports in the Flight Research Division at NASA. Katherine never backed down from a challenge, even when she was struggling with coworkers who constantly bullied her because of her skin colour and gender. Katherine Johnson is my role model because she is strong, incredibly intelligent, and lastly because she didn’t back down from a challenge, even when everyone seemed to be against her.
Chris Gray
My dad is one of the strongest, smartest and selfless people I know. Every single morning, no matter if he’s sick or exhausted, he goes to work, and every single night when my brothers and I have an activity to get to, and he’s always there. He works hard everyday for my family and I’ve never heard him complain, because I know he loves what he’s doing, even if it’s difficult. Ever since I was little, I’ve had a lot of questions about basically everything, and he always has an answer for my questions, no matter how dumb they are. He’s very intelligent and can do any math problem mentally, and he’s always right. My dad puts my brothers and I before him when it comes to anything, and he does it with a smile on his face. Even when I have a super early morning soccer game, he gets up, makes a coffee, and goes because he wants to always be there to cheer me on. He’s a hard worker, very intelligent, and will always put my family’s needs before his own, and that’s what makes him not only an amazing dad, but also an amazing person.
Bill and Melinda Gates
I’ve always wanted to make an impact on the world, small or big, and Bill and Melinda Gates are exactly the people I think of when someone says impact, because they’ve made an enormous, positive impact on our world. The Gates are one of the richest families in the world, but instead of using their money to buy various cars and mansions, they use their money to help people around the world. From giving money to universities to creating health care plans in third world countries, they have donated millions of dollars to communities in need. Bill and Melinda are selfless, generous and extraordinary people and they inspire me everyday to do something kind.
Mark Watney
Mark Watney is the astronaut in The Martian, the fictional novel written by Andy Weir. He is hit by a piece of space equipment during a storm, and left upon the empty grounds of Mars. Mark is a very smart, determined and strong character, and he’s an inspiration for me. When Watney is left on Mars, he must drag himself back to the camp and heal his life threatening injury to the rib. He gets straight to work when he’s realized he’s stranded, fixing the main base of his missions camp and planning how he would possibly get home. He uses his intelligent mind to grow his own crops, warm his base with solar panels, and even contact NASA through a machine he makes. After months and months, most people would accept the fact that they were good as gone, but Mark doesn’t give up. He puts his mind to work, powering through any struggles he may face, big or small. Watney stays determined, in hopes of one day returning home. He stays strong mentally and eventually returns home. Mark Watney put his mind to work to survive, he never gave up and he powered through any problem thrown at him without a complaint, and that’s why he inspires me.
Ed Sheeran
Fame and fortune, that’s exactly what Ed Sheeran didn’t want when he came into the music world. Ed Sheeran is an humble, creative and unique musician who doesn’t play by any judgemental rules set by society. Ed Sheeran has always had an undying passion for music, he began writing songs at an incredibly young age and has been performing since he was a child. Although his fame grows by the day, Sheeran has never cared about how popular he is, he plays music for people so they feel things, not so he makes money. Ed writes all of his songs, each of them possessing a different emotion to them. His lyrics aren’t mainstream, but they make whoever’s listening feel good because of the positivity laced within them. Lastly, Ed Sheeran is unique because he doesn’t follow the rules in the music industry when it comes to being cool. His one love is music, and he performs without a care in the world about if he’s cool or not. Ed Sheeran is an inspiration because he is humble, creative and unique.
Until next time,
Tatum