An Analysis of Tom Brown Jr.
By Jim SpinaThe old state roofed barn creaks arthritically
in the late spring breeze while swallows flutter and sing away their nesting
chores. The scent of wood smoke, cedar, and musty old barn wood pervades the
air. Out on the black-topped highway sleepy morning commuters wind their way
toward smoky city caverns while silver jetliners soar above dark-feathered hawks
and vultures. The cars and airplanes create strange juxtapositions of movement
against the rural landscape. Inside the barn, all present have been welded
together into one mass of spirit and brotherhood. The thirty-five men and women
seated before the speaker are enraptured and silent against the hardwood-planked
floor. The speaker is a tall man, his suntanned body covered only by a pair of
old, faded bluejeans. As he speaks he paces, barefoot and catlike, in front of
his audience. He is like a caged wolf but his movements add strength to his
words and his piercing blue-gray eyes flash with the fervor of his intensity.
The air is electrified with expectation, even the barn swallows become mute as
they succumb to the force and power of the moment. The ancient and decaying barn
is not immune from the feeling, for as its spirit is consumed and becomes one
with the earth, so too does it become one with the speaker, transferring to him
the power and wisdom of the earth through the boards under his feet. And
likewise does the speaker share this wisdom and knowledge with all who sit
within the ancient one. The wonder and magic flows through everything, for all
have contributed - the earth, the ancient old barn, the speaker and the audience
- and now they are as one.
The above, only partially describes the daily
atmosphere at the Tom Brown School. To relate each student’s own personal
reactions would encompass many volumes, for each person arrives at the school
with his own unique personality and experimental contributions, and leaves much
more self-enriched, a more total being. People on the outside describe it as an
almost magical aura surrounding students of Tom Brown's School. If any one
reaction can be said to be universally shared, it is, perhaps, the feeling of
brotherhood that develops among students and between the students and Tom Brown.
The normal masculine compulsion to compete with other men quickly melts away and
is replaced by a oneness of spirit between Tom and his male students. Women,
too, are drawn to Tom Brown, as he speaks, for the fire of his message reaches
everyone at heart level. Many students find that they cannot experience this
melding of spirit anywhere else in their lives, even among their closest family
members. People do tend to blend close together at the school, and for some it
may be the first time in their lives that they can talk with other people who
"really understand" them. It is not very hard, in our modern society,
to be lost and alone in a crowd of "friends", for the world seems
intent on losing itself on steadily narrowing materialistic trails.
During my few visits to the Farm in Asbury, I
have taken the time to speak with many brothers and sisters attending the
courses. Through these conversations it has become apparent to me that people
are very much satisfied with the courses and the quality of instruction. If
there is any one underlying dissatisfaction I have detected among a few, it is
the relative inaccessibility of Tom to the students while at the school and at
times when they have met him on his lecture tours. Complaints have ranged from:
"When I took the course I thought I'd have more time to speak with Tom
alone"; "He didn't even recognize me when I met him at my
college"; "He seemed so distant and aloof". How can these
situations come about? How can the same Tom Brown that almost mesmerizes the
class with his warmth and brotherhood ignore or not recognize a former student?
The answers to these questions may not be too readily apparent unless we give
the matter some close thought and move ourselves around to Tom's side of the
Medicine Wheel.
Let
us begin with Tom's inaccessibility at the school. We all arrive at the school
with our own unique lives behind us. We have read Tom's books and already feel a
kinship to the man and his precepts. Through his books we have begun to feel as
though we have known him all of our lives. In essence he has become very special
and close to us before we ever get to meet him. Now we find ourselves in a
classroom with 30 to 40 other people, each of whom feel that same burning
"closeness to Tom Brown, and that same "need" to see him alone.
Realistically, this would be an almost impossible task, even for Tom Brown. Were
Tom to grant each student even one hour alone with him would take him almost 40
hours to accomplish with a class of average size. Any important ideas that may
arise during this one-to-one conversation would be deprived of class
interaction, which is so very important for true learning to be achieved. The
person peaking with Tom "may" learn an hour's worth of knowledge that
the class would lose but he would then lose all the time taken by his fellow
students. The loss to all would be far greater than any possible good to be
gained. Also, we must bear in mind the fact that Tom Brown has a family and is
entitled to his private life. Tom is a very busy man, being constantly besieged
by commitments from people all over the country. He is able to set in little
enough time for relaxation with his family as it is, and we should not ask him
for more time for us. It is true that we all share a brotherhood of our minds,
but we must always remember that Tom, like each of us, is an individual first
- then he belongs to us. If we don't allow him to be worthwhile to himself he
cannot be anything worthwhile to us.
To find the answer to why Tom may seem distant
and fail to recognize a former student, we must begin with what we know of his
personality. Tom Brown is an extremely intense person, especially when he is
speaking before a group. We can see this intensity bear fruit during his
lectures which evoke vivid mind pictures of his knowledge and experiences. Tom
precedes even a routine lecture at the school with much mental preparation. His
mind becomes focused solely upon bringing forth any and every facet of expertise
he can render his students. During these preparatory times he becomes almost
oblivious to his family and friends and may even become annoyed if a disturbance
breaks his train of thought. Tom's intensity is nurtured by his personal
dedication and spiritual devotion to both his subject and his students, which
may seem a contradiction if he fails to acknowledge a student by name or
seemingly ignores another, but this can be explained and understood in view of
his single focused, almost trance-like state of mind during a lecture. We must
also remember that almost 10,000 people have attended classes at the Tracker
School; add to this the countless number of people who have attended his outside
lectures or met Tom since The Tracker was published and you only begin to
realize the enormous number of people who expect Tom to know them. We must
always bear in mind that Tom Brown is human and subject to human faults. We
cannot expect him to be able to remember over 10,000 names and faces just to
assuage our feelings.
We who share Tom Brown are very fortunate
because we also share a very unique perception of the earth and its creatures.
This perception has been enhanced by Tom’s teachings, but for most of us it
developed from within a long time ago. This is the real reason for our strong
affinity toward Tom and his School. This makes us all very special brothers and
sisters, but we must bear in mind that Tom's uniqueness and our special
brotherhood is always overshadowed by the Great Spirit and our Earth Mother. Our
respect and dedication must always be directed first to them. Tom Brown is only
a very gifted teacher, bestowed with the universal gifts of skill and knowledge
that were once common to all men but have since been erased by civilization. We
should not attempt to award sainthood to him. His importance comes from what he
teaches, although it is sometimes all too easy for many of us to took toward him
as some kind of prophet just because our hearts tell us that he teaches truth.
For us to blindly follow or expect superhuman feats from a man can be a
dangerous path to tread. We must always keep things in perspective. The strong
sensations felt by many of us come from the depths of our spirits as we approach
our oneness with the natural world. From us will come the keys that unlock the
doors to the lost culture of the Native Americans, for the natural laws we are
just now discovering have been around since the dawn of time. They have lain
dormant for too long and now are shouting to be heard above the din of our
cities. The spirits of the New World have been abused for too long and must be
placated by our respect and reverence before they can begin to act in our
behalf. Tom Brown teaches this reverence and respect, and we can feel the spirit
world responding as we learn.
We must always remember that what we've learned
is a valuable asset that should be shared by everyone. It is strong medicine
that can awaken the spirits that have slept for centuries and these spirits will
reward us and our future generations. We feel these spirits stir and move when
we learn to "really see" the world around us in its harmony and
splendor. Observing the wonders of a glorious sunrise or a majestic waterfall
give us all strong emotional feelings. At Tom Brown's School we learn to see the
same wonders in an ant walking across a dewdrop-speckled leaf. At such times we
come the closest to the Great Spirit, and we subconsciously strive to repeat
these wondrous experiences. Tom Brown and his School are our windows to these
glimpses of the power and works of the Great Spirit, but we must remember to
keep him within this context, for, like a glass window, he too is fragile and
can be destroyed by abuse or misuse.
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