Johnny goes to modeling class in his school for special children and he gets his piece of putty and he's modeling it. He takes a little lump of putty and goes to a corner of the room and he's playing with it. The teacher comes up to him and says, 'Hi, Johnny.' And Johnny says, 'Hi.' And the teacher says, 'What's that you've got in your hand?' And Johnny says, 'This is a lump of cow dung.' The teacher asks, 'What are you making out of it?' He says, 'I'm making a teacher.' The teacher thought, 'Little Johnny has regressed.' So she calls out to the principal, who was passing by the door at that moment, and says, 'Johnny has regressed.' So the principal goes up to Johnny and says, 'Hi, son.' And Johnny says, 'Hi.' And the principal says, 'What do you have in your hand?' And he says, 'A lump of cow dung.' 'What are you making out of it?' And he says, 'A principal.' The principal thinks that this is a case for the school psychologist. 'Send for the psychologist!' The psychologist is a clever guy. He goes up and says, 'Hi.' And Johnny says, 'Hi.' And the psychologist says, 'I know what you've got in your hand.' 'What?' 'A lump cow dung.' Johnny says, 'Right.' 'And I know what you're making out of it.' 'What?' 'You're making a psychologist.' 'Wrong. Not enough cow dung!'
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- A child creates a crude model of authority figures, suggesting they see them as common or flawed.
- In plain terms
- A child models authority figures from cow dung, implying they are unclean.
- What can you take from it?
- Question what authority figures mean to you.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- How do you view authority?
- What do you see in leaders?
Another view
It relies on a specific anecdote that might be taken too literally.
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