Working Together Works Wonderfully

EDITORIAL - Sunday, December 14, 2008 - Thanksgiving marked the third anniversary of the "About_Ironwood" site. This Yahoo! WebGroup was something I created out of boredom -- due to a lack of anything better to do. After examining several Yahoo! Groups I thought to myself, "Wouldn't this be a good forum for people in Ironwood to freely express their opinions and offer ideas to improve things."

Within months, our membership grew to over a thousand people, mostly by word of mouth. Our rules were quite simple. We asked that everybody be respectful of one another; we forbid profanity and foul language; we forbid libelous posts; and we asked that everybody be honest and truthful. New members' first posts were monitored to make sure they weren't spam or nuts, but the site -- for the most part -- was unregulated free speech.

One of my first posts to the site was a favorite story of mine. I've posted it several times over the years, because I so value the story's message. Since the Superior Chronicle's first year anniversary is only weeks away, I thought it would be appropriate to post the story on this site. So here it is... Stone Soup...

There was a man traveling in the bitter cold of winter. He was very hungry and all he had with him was a pot, a wooden spoon and a stone. It was early in the evening when the traveler arrived in a small village. The people of this village had not had much to eat and were not getting along. He observed that all the folk were tucked in their cozy warm homes, the image of light glowing through closed curtains, held behind snow frosted windows. The chimneys billowed smoke, yet he did not smell the various foods that should be filling the air at that hour.

"How hungry I am", he thought. He approached the first house in the village and knocked on the door.

"Could you spare a morsel of food for a weary traveler?" the man asked the woman who answered the door.

"Certainly not, sir, I barely have enough to feed my family. Although it saddens me deeply, I cannot help you!" the woman told the traveler.

The traveler went to the next house... then the next... and then the next... and each time he was told the same thing.

Frustrated and hungry, the traveler sat down in the middle of the square and built a small fire. He placed his pot on the fire and added into it the cleanest snow. With his large wooden spoon, he stirred this pot as the snow melted and the steam rose.

He glanced over the houses and noticed a few people peeking back at him through their parted curtains. He pulled the stone from his pocket and added it to the pot with great ceremony. He stirred and smiled over the soup. Curiosity getting the better of one woman, she opened her door and ventured to the square.

"I say Sir, what do you have there?" she asked.

"I have the best soup in the world, Stone Soup," he replied.

"Stone Soup?" She asked shocked.

The traveler smiled at her, then continued, "but it could use a few carrots".

"Well, I could share a few carrots for your soup", she said rushing back to her home to retrieve them.

Another woman came to the square asking the same.

"I am making the best soup in the world," the traveler told her, "Stone Soup."

"Stone soup?" She asked shocked.

"I could use a few potatoes and perhaps some meat."

"I could give you a few potatoes and perhaps the butcher would be able to help you with the meat!" she replied and hurried to her home.

Soon the word was out. This man was making soup with a special stone. The villagers brought many contributions to the pot. They stood around the square waiting and watching as the traveler stirred the bubbling soup and smiled.

"Oh, my", the first woman said, "That sure does smell good." "Must be the special stone you have."

"Could be", said the traveler smiling. Why don't all of you share this soup with me and lets find out."

The folks gathered around the square, talking and laughing and enjoying the most delicious soup in the world, Stone Soup.

Stone Soup is basically a children's story. Different versions have been told for decades all over the world. It's message is plain and simple. The weary traveler brought "community" back to the village. Collectively, the story proved, the villagers thrived. Independently, they struggled.

This is a lesson I wish we could all take to heart. Ironwood is a beautiful town. It's a wonderful place to live and raise a family. I've lived here all my life, and it saddens me deeply to see my home town struggle. Like in the story, many of Ironwood's residents are struggling to make ends meet.

People need to start working together if we are going to survive. We need to work with our neighbors and friends and collectively we will thrive. Together we can accomplish things we'd never be able to do alone. Giving each other a "helping hand" will make us all stronger. Stone Soup's message will not only work for individuals, but it can work for whole communities as well. Ironwood needs to open its arms to the Townships, Hurley, Bessemer, and Wakefield. We need to start sharing our resources and expenses -- working together to make the entire area a better place. Separately, none of these small communities will be able to survive. Our neighboring communities are our friends and family. We need to break down the barriers that divide us. We need to bury our petty differences and we need to start focusing on what is really important to us all -- survival. As the national economy worsens, things get tougher and tougher for our local government. Working together, sharing equipment, sharing costs, and even sharing revenues -- we can all benefit.

Jim Albert