COMMENTARY: Spiderman

  • Published
  • By Chaplain (Capt.) Meade Adams
  • 2nd Bomb Wing Chapel

“With great power comes great responsibility” Uncle Ben, Spiderman

Anyone that knows me knows that I am a huge nerd. Star Trek, Star Wars, comic books, superhero movies, you name it, I’m into it! While I enjoy the action, the stories and the themes found within these mediums, they also contain a lot of good life lessons and material that we can glean from. For the next few weeks we will be in a superhero series, starting with the above quote.

I’ve encountered a lot of Airmen on base that have a lot of power (though they likely wouldn’t say so). Our maintainers have the lives of the pilots and crews in their hands. Our weapons and ammo troops work with technology that is life and death every day. Of course our pilots, navigators and weapons officers have great power. Commanders, Chiefs, Flight Commanders, Frontline Supervisors all have tremendous power over the lives of their Airmen. The question for all of us that wield great power is how are we using it? Do we view and value and hold this power with a sense of great responsibility? If there is power, there is a responsibility to wield that power with respect and caution.

I also have encountered many Airmen that feel powerless. My counsel to those who feel powerless, be it on the job, at home, or in life in general, is this: take responsibility. The above quote could easily be “to achieve great power, take responsibility”. Take responsibility for your decisions, your goals and your dreams. Dream a dream and make it happen. We all have power over something in our lives. The key is learning how to use it.