Jill's Journal: The Lynx Way - one scoop at a time

I’ve seen The Lynx Way in action a number of times since Dr. Jarod Larson, the superintendent of Brandon Valley Schools, first introduced the character-trait program here.

I’ve witnessed kids build buddy benches, rake lawns, hold open a door, help a friend – or even a stranger – in need. I’ve seen it printed on thousands of T-shirts, bracelets, posters and more, all to remind us to be kind, respectful, responsible,  safe and active learners. And each and every time I’ve witnessed The Lynx Way in action, it has warmed my heart over and over and over.

Although I’ve known Supt. Larson to be one of the good guys, I was blessed by his timely presence Tuesday morning as my car was buried deep in Mother Nature’s first wrath of the new year: inches and inches and inches of snow quicking adding up to a foot or more.

Like the dairy producers, the press continues to roll just like the cows need to be milked – no matter how much of the white stuff is piling up. Coming off a three-day break, I headed to the office long before the sun came up Tuesday morning – although it never really peeked out through the dense snowfall. As daylight came into play, the snowfall became heavier and visibility was declining more and more by the minute. About 8:30 that morning, I decided to play it smart and work the rest of the day from home.

Let’s just say, it wasn’t a smooth ride from the get go.

My first snafu was getting stuck at the corner of Cedar and Splitrock. Fortunately, I was able to maneuver my way back and forth until I finally gained enough footing to turn onto Splitrock.

With little traffic on the roadway, I carefully steered my AWD Chevy to  Holly Boulevard, proceeded west to Sioux Boulevard, finally reaching my destination on Cedar Street: home.

Unfortunately, what stood before me and my cozy apartment was a slippery incline driveway. We’ve tangled before over the years, but I had some confidence that my AWD would have little problem in tackling ‘Mount Incline’ en route to my final destination: the garage.

I nearly reached the top of ‘Mount Incline’ on my attempt before coming to a screehing halt. I knew that required me to back it up and try, try, try again ... that was, of course, until my car became stuck in the middle of the road, essentially blocking any traffic that may be coming my way.

I opted for my next best chance to get out of this predicament by marching up ‘Mount Incline’ and plucking a shovel from the garage. I gave it the ol’ college try by clearing snow from around the tires, then jumped into the driver’s seat and gunned it with all the Chevy has.

As it turned out, I was stuck even worse than before. About that time, Supt. Larson, behind the wheel of a big black Surburban, rolled up to offer not only his muscle, but his knowlege in how we were going to be able to achieve success, hence get my car from being stuck in the middle of the road to being tucked away in the garage for better days on the road.

He shoveled. He directed. He shoveled some more. He directed some more. And he was gracious through it all.

I well remember when Supt. Larson first came to the district. He talked about his previous assignment in northern South Dakota, where as the superintendent of a smaller school district, he was often tasked with doing some of the heavy lifting, including moving snow when needed.

I have an inkling that Supt. Larson’s been living a ‘Lynx Way’ of life long before he came here. And today, this ol’ gal saw ‘The Lynx Way’ in action.