Have you ever noticed on the side of a £2 coin it says; “Standing on the shoulders of giants”?
This comes from a letter written by Isaac Newton (of falling apples fame) to a fellow scientist Robert Hooke, acknowledging the debt he owed to others, \'if I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants\'.
We sometimes talk of all kinds of shoulders: hard shoulders, shoulders to cry on, rubbing shoulders with someone, shoulders to the grindstone, chips on shoulders, cold shoulders, and even old heads on young shoulders. But standing on shoulders, what does that mean?
For me it speaks of people who have helped me to be what I am now by encouraging, teaching or simply believing in me. They helped me stand tall and hopefully, walk reasonably straight! It may have been a hero, a relative, a teacher or a colleague.
We haven\'t got to where we are or learned what we have learnedon our own, it\'s their influence that has taught us and helped us to see further.
Who do you know who has helped you, believed in you and encouraged you? Who has cheered you on saying “you can do it”! Whose shoulders do you stand on? If you can, maybe you could say thanks to them? If the moment has gone, could you “pass on” that encouragement to someone else? And if you struggle to think of someone for whom you can do that; just be yourself and look for someone to encourage.
A book called the Message says: “Do you see what this means—all these pioneers who blazed the way, all these people cheering us on? It means we’d better get on with it. Strip down, start running—and don’t quit!”
We’re here to listen and encourage so get in touch if you want.
Geoff on geoff.findlay@wpcscotland.co.uk 07933167480
Or Chic on chic.lidstone@wpcscotland.co.uk or 07814093240
Work Place Chaplaincy Scotland
providing a caring and confidential support to all those in the workplace