One of my father's favorite poems was Roadmaster, about the railroad man in charge of maintaining the train tracks. The roadmaster's job was not as romantic or flashy as the railroad engineer who operated the locomotive, but his work was essential to the success of the railroad. The poem is true for all of us who have had quiet and essential jobs, usually unrecognized, where our position required that we work hard in a system or job that we didn't design where we have none of the glory and all of the responsibility. This principle goes hand in hand with the first rule that I learned for surviving a surgical residency:
"It is always my fault."
Roadmaster (Contributed by Rick Leggett, ARR General Roadmaster)
It's not my job to run the train. The whistle I don't blow. It's not my job to say how far, the trains supposed to go. I'm not allowed to pull the brake, or even ring the bell. But let the damn thing leave the track, And see who catches hell!
My father would slap his knee and laugh each time he finished reciting the poem.
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