Reaching for Highest Potential

As human beings we have a tendency to underachieve—to short ourselves on our full potential. It seems we are pre-convinced that we can only reach a certain point and then have to turn around. In reality, however, there is a strength inside of us that we never knew possible. We are predestined to be something great—to do something great-- but we don’t always uncover enough strength to get there. Brian Tracy explained the concept of potential well when he said “the potential of an average person is like a huge ocean un-sailed, a new continent unexplored, a world of possibilities waiting to be released and channeled toward some great good.” When we’re young it’s almost like we live in a bubble, our world is full of smiley faces and butterflies; we are completely unaware of the evil that surrounds us. Growing older and older causes us to encounter new experiences, meet new people, and finally realize what the world is really like. The outside world slowly becomes clear through glimpses. Constantly it informs us we can’t do things; it is a wall that hinders us from what is on the other side. As long as our eyes are set on what’s ahead, our full potential will become visible. There is always an adventure calling our name, all that’s needed is the time to listen for it.

As we grow, change and learn, we walk through life with people on either side of us; there to guide our steps or to pick us up when we fall. It is impossible to go through life alone. The wall we climb is not one we can do without a foothold. God gifts us with family and friends to encourage us—to keep us going. Often times, the only thing we need on a bad day is a simple uplifting word, and that is just what these relationships are for. Many times they act as more of a supernatural aid than friend; they teach us, they help us, they love us even when we’re not worthy of love.

Our lives are a journey and even though we embark on it with many other people, it is still our individual journey and we have the capability to steer any way we want. It is clear as we go along that what is ahead is not always going to be easy. However, if life was completely ‘smooth sailing’ we wouldn’t learn. The majority of the wisdom that we accumulate over a lifetime is simply from making mistakes. Making these mistakes and facing the challenges that we do is what truly shapes our character. Our life is merely a road of trials by which we learn to grow into what we’re truly capable of becoming.

Two men, whose lives are portrayed through the novels The Once and Future King and Fahrenheit 451, are tested through multiple situations to fulfill their true potential—the destiny that is in store. Though their life stories are great opposites they are bound by the Hero’s Journey in its simplest form. They encounter many of the same opportunities to prove their strength to themselves as well as to those surrounding them.

Arthur, of The Once and Future King, longs for adventure, just like any young boy would. This is the clear reasoning behind why Arthur and his selfish brother, Kay, took Cully, the hawk, into the Forest Savauge. When the bird wouldn’t return to the ground, however, the boys found themselves in a bit of a crisis. They waited as patiently as they could but soon Kay lost hope and returned home, while Arthur stayed beneath the tree. The sun set lower in the sky and still Arthur waited. Later in the night a peculiar character came along, far from chivalric but dressed from head to toe in knightly apparel, King Pellinore explained his mission. He had been sent to capture the Questing Beast for many, many years. Their encounter was short but just what Arthur needed to gain hope. He began looking for a way home and stumbled upon a small cottage, where he met a magical man who called himself Merlyn. Arthur decided he had to take this man home and present him to Sir Ector as an educator. Arthur’s unexpected stay in the forest was the beginning of continuous trials that were meant to build Arthur’s character, along with his heart. This man he discovered seemed to hold wisdom meant for him, convincing Arthur he had been on a quest all along. Once he reached the castle he couldn’t help but exclaim, “Look! I have been on a quest.. I went on a quest for him” (37). Little did he know this quest was more important for him than anyone realized.

People come in and out of our lives all the time, but there are special circumstances when someone comes into your life and leaves you with something that changes you as a person. By following a hawk into the forest, unaware of where it might take him, Arthur uncovered a new path for his life. He was forced to find a strength within him to be his own hero. He overcame fear through simply having the strength to step forward even when he wasn’t sure what was ahead. While in the forest “[Arthur] found that, although he was frightened of the danger of the forest before it happened, once he was in it he was not frightened anymore” (20). When we’re standing on the outside of something it can seem larger than any journey; a clear example of this is life. There is so much ahead of us, so much that we have yet to see and accomplish, it is a great deal to imagine and can seem overwhelming, but the key is to take it one step at a time. Arthur was in unknown territory and was still able to sincerely look ahead to the next thing and eventually find himself in safety once again.

Returning home with a strange character of whom he insisted be hired as a mentor was surprising to even Arthur himself. Sir Ector agreed and Merlyn moved into the castle. Little did the family know what was actually in store for them. Merlyn was not only a magician but he could also see things from an extremely different perspective. He was, in fact, aging backwards. Instead of getting older, this sage was getting younger; he had already seen the future and was looking towards the past. When it came to Arthur’s future he was quite the expert. The lessons he had in store were to build Arthur into the strong man Merlyn knew he would be someday.

Merlyn’s ways of teaching were different than any other. He taught Arthur through life experiences; changing him into various animals; stressing the fact that, as humans, we learn the most through our own experiences. All along Merlyn knew what life had ahead for Arthur. His only task was to appropriately prepare Arthur for the great responsibility he would carry on his shoulders one day. All along he only longed for Arthur to see his people for their true needs and longings—to see his people through different eyes. Running a kingdom takes more than knowing just simple literature and mathematics; Merlyn knew it was important that Arthur understood the way people think and the different ways a kingdom could be ruled—with war or equality.

Merlyn was able to teach Arthur many essential life values, which he would find useful in the future. Even though Merlyn was Arthur’s mentor and teacher, he became a friend and a father as well. His task was to teach the boy all the wisdom he would need to rule his people and through this time of teaching he came to respect the boy as if he were his own. And once it came time to let go, he left Arthur with words from his heart. “I know the sorrows before you, and the joys, and how there will never again be anybody who dares to call you by the friendly name of Wart. In future it will be your glorious doom to take up the burden and to enjoy the nobility of your proper title: so how I shall crave the privilege of being the very first of your subjects to address you with it—as my dear liege lord, King Arthur” (209).

Before Arthur could obtain this respected name, he had to acquire enough wisdom to become that leader. Merlyn transformed him into multiple different animals to expose him to an assortment of lifestyles. Through living as these animals he was able to see firsthand, essentially what the needs of his people would be one day. One of the his transformations, possibly the most altering, was when Arthur became a badger. He made acquaintance with a wise friend of Merlyn. Their meeting wasn’t so much about learning of the ways of the badger; instead, the reasoning behind the behaviors and power of the human being became clear. Badger tells a story describing how every embryo of life was asked if they would like to be improved at the beginning of time. Each one said yes and God granted them their wings or beaks, and whatever else was desired. But when it came to the humans’ turn, they simply replied with, “Please God, I think that You have made me in the shape which I now have for reasons best known to Yourselves, and that it would be rude to change. If I am to have my choice I will stay as I am” (192). God granted the humans ruling over everything. Through this transformation, Arthur learns of the origins of his power and what God’s true plan for the world was when he created the creatures that now walk upon it.

Through each lesson taught by Merlyn, Arthur is able to experience life through very different eyes. When the badger challenges him to look at his own people in a different way, everything becomes clear. God put his people on this earth to do His work, but not very often do they truly honor His wishes. War was never supposed to be a habitual event, people were meant to live in harmony with each other and build up God’s creation instead of tear it down. When talking about this, Badger says “Well, it is true that man has the Order of Dominion and is the mightiest of the animals—if you mean the most terrible one” (193). The power that was given to us as people over this earth has been abused and wasted. So much of our time on earth is filled with violence and sadness when it should be used to shape our nation into all it can be—to reach its highest potential.

Arthur was not the only one to learn of his capabilities through lessons like these. Montag, the determined main character in Fahrenheit 451, encounters trial after trial of which he must get through in order reach his goal.

A question is a powerful thing. In Guy Montag’s routine life a question was all he needed. While walking down the sidewalk one day he came across a beautiful seventeen year old girl, Clarisse, whose curiosity with life causes him to see things in a different light. She asks him, “We need not to be let alone. We need to be really bothered once in a while. How long is it since you were really bothered? About something important, about something real?”(52). Her innocent nature and simple questions lead him to wonder what the purpose of his life truly is. He begins to notice things and feel a sense of emptiness for the first time. He was bombarded with questions; “How do you get so empty? Who takes it out of you”(44). He works as a fireman, burning books day after day. At one of his jobs he witnesses a woman ask to be burned with her books. This causes Montag to wonder what the significance of books really is. Even though it is completely against the rules of society, he begins to sneak books home to explore their meaning. Through a few simple questions Montag found a new drive, a new reason to wake up every day. He had something to figure out.

The majority of students as well as those in the workforce like to work towards something, a common goal. They find these goals through many circumstances. In Montag’s case it didn’t take much for him to change his view on his lifestyle. Sometimes all we need is for someone else to say what we’re thinking out loud. People ask themselves all the time what their true purpose is on earth, but having someone else ask it out loud can act as a light switch, enough to inspire an idea. This girl’s innocent questions were ultimately meant to change Montag, to call him to adventure. He had now unlocked a curiosity inside of him and there was no turning back.

From his call, Montag is provided with aids who help him more than he truly knows. He really is given two different aids; Clarisse and Faber. In the beginning Clarisse saves him from completely throwing away his life—living with no purpose. She simply makes him think about where he is headed and the things he has left behind. Even in death Clarisse still helps Montag. Her death challenges him to find the truth, to find what’s missing in the world. He then finds Faber—a man who knows how the world once was but just doesn’t have the energy to bring it back. Montag is his energy. Together they do all they can to save the books; to save the people. Even though Montag goes through many hardships and runs into many people that only want to bring him down, he goes on, knowing that what he believes in will benefit him as well as his people more than anyone knows or understands. Losing literature could send the world into an infinite tailspin for the worst, but only people like Faber or Montag take the time to really see it.

So often we don’t have all the capabilities to accomplish everything on our own. There are certain things we can achieve—certain standards we can always reach without anyone giving us a little shove. But so many take that little shove for granted. Just a single word of encouragement or those moments when just having someone near is all you need, can seem supernatural—like magic, the reassurance you feel. Faber encourages Montag by reassuring him he’ll be there all along. Together “we stand against the small tide of those who want to make everyone unhappy with conflicting theory and thought. We have our fingers in the dike. Hold steady. Don’t let the torrent of melancholy and drear philosophy drown our world. We depend on you. I don’t think you realize how important you are, we are, to our happy world as it stands now.”(62). Montag really had to do all the figuring out, himself. Faber and Clarisse just provided him with a helping hand when he needed it. They asked the right questions and said the right things to keep him going. This was just the aid Montag needed. As human beings we need the same thing. We can become discouraged so easily and most of the time all we need is a simple act of kindness—a smile or subtle compliment is more powerful than anticipated. In Montag’s case, he was flooded with encouragement.

There are some people in the world that often get in the way of what’s really important. For Montag this hindrance was his own boss, Beatty. The man is constantly questioning Montag and attempting to convince him pushing forward is worthless. This situation is equivalent to a child being told Santa isn’t real, but the child is too convinced to hear. The innocence and the determination of Montag was like that of a child. Beatty even makes an effort to elaborate on the history of books--where they came from. He quoted different poems and excerpts from books, only trying to prove the emptiness of them, but it was worthless. Montag was convinced; he was not going to give up hope anytime soon. So many of the things Beatty said could’ve strayed Montag from his path-- from his mission-- but he stayed strong.
These conversations that challenged Montag were only tests—trials necessary to prove his strength. Arthur, in The Once and Future King, went through similar steps to leadership when he was transformed into different types of animals. While Arthur’s situation was more fictional, Montag’s was an example of what people go through every day. People all around us insist on challenging our beliefs or ways of life and this is exactly what Montag was put through. He found something to really believe in and fight for but was not allowed to live for it. However, Montag sets a strong example. Who is anyone to tell us we can’t do something? If we have the confidence in ourselves and the willingness to take risks, we can accomplish anything. Pushing forward can take a lot sometimes but as long as we do, we can gain an abundance of knowledge that will benefit us forever. The world is always going to test us, the road ahead is never going to be easy. That is why the years of youth are so important. It is where we build our base, our foundation determining what the rest of our life could be like.

These men have one large thing in common. They both were forced to mature in a very short amount of time and they both became more than they ever thought possible. The experiences they were forced into and the people around them mad them reach until they could touch the stars. Arthur was taught to become a king when he was just a young man. And Montag found a passion and had to find a confidence within him he never knew before. Their lives changed quickly, but for both, they found it for the good and possibly just in time. For Arthur, he could’ve never known his highest potential and for Montag, he could have lost all chances of reaching it. The smallest bit of question can drive a person to accumulate more understanding of themselves than someone can over a lifetime. Both characters were tested and questioned all along the way only being lead to find their true values, which in the end they were able to uncover; finding something to live for. Ben Herbster once described our lives in this simple statement, “The greatest waste in the world is the difference between what we are and what we could become.” What lies in our future is unknown to us now, but if we fight through life each and every day glimpses of our life ahead will be revealed. Arthur and Montag reached for the stars and gained the world.