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If there are
dimensions in the world like Einstein believed there were, certainly
Chilocco could have been an example of that. As a student our lives were
lived in a Utopian environment. Everything we needed was provided. We had
clean sheets, plenty of water for showering, three balanced meals a day, a
beautifully landscaped campus, great stone buildings, and good friends who
were without stress. If we conformed to the rules and regulations, life
was most pleasant.
Upon becoming an
employee there was a sudden awakening to a different world existing apart
from what had formerly been known when I was a student. Compared to
today's standards for the working person, of course, there was no
comparison. But, for the difference between student and employee this was
where the thought of dimensions came into play. Oh sure, we still were in
the same buildings, walked the same sidewalks, and lived on campus as
well, but somewhere within this time frame there was another world.
Not too many former
students became employees at the time. This was a bit of a stumbling block
but not much.
When I opened the
door to take my place behind the desk outside the principal's office
everyone else was already in their place. One of the male administrative
persons looked up at me and then glanced at the clock. I was five minutes
early but apparently he felt the need to double check. This was a quiet
reminder for me of my standing among these seasoned workers. Although I
had gone through the discipline of the school there was an unstated
attitude with some of them that clearly indicated how they felt. Too
young, too untried, and just plain, too new. It was like the cat in the
hat. “Too spotty, too tall, too big, too small.” In other words there was
no pleasing some of them. Fortunately, I was too young to care. I had been
given the detail to work in the office when at the school so the chores
were not that much different. I knew the regimen. Of course,
responsibilities were greater. But the equipment, the tools, the staff of
the school, with all these things I was accustomed and acquainted.
Juco had prepared me
with endless hours of shorthand training. Writing thirty pages a day of it
would brainwash even the slowest of people to learn.
Dr. Wall, the
principal, dictated methodically. The secretary before me said I could
write the transcription in as he lingered over this phrase or that
statement. The letters of a government organization were usually dry with
language even a girl could easily understand. Sometimes my eyes drifted to
look out the windows where the white geese were bobbing on the lake while
I waited for him to gather his thoughts on one subject or another. The
artist in my soul made me want to study the man, too. He was tall, dark
and decidedly handsome. His long delicate fingers were outstandingly
noticeable for a man of his size. He had a young family, a strong devoted
wife and generally seemed to be very contented with this new job. He came
to Chilocco well able to handle government schools. When he spoke the
words were sometimes halting and measured as if he was used to speaking to
people of another race who might not easily understand English. Indeed, he
had been in a school of Navajo children who mostly didn't speak English.
Endless hours of
working with forms and paper work gave me a respect....no! respect is not
the right word. Rather, it gave me an empathy for the people who work in
bureaucratic positions. The hours of filling out forms might have been
maddening for a young girl except that Dr. Wall, who was a true leader,
was so patient. I always felt he could have done the work himself except
for once when I had to be gone for a day, I realized differently. One of
the teachers laughingly showed me a memo he had typed to her. She said,
“Dr. Wall was sitting at your desk answering the phone and trying to type
this. It wasn't a pretty sight.”
Needless to say, I never missed a day of work after that. |
