President's Message - Your Influence Extends Far Beyond You!  January 2001

As you evaluate the influence that you as an individual can have on the lives of others, please remember this: One person can make a tremendous difference! Just like a single drop of water on a still pond sends out ripples in an ever-expanding circle, one person can have an ever-expanding influence on those around him. You do not have to be famous. You do not have to be powerful. You do not have to be the designated leader. Just because you are a person - just because you are you - you can make a difference. Whether you realize it or not, you are making a difference in the lives of others right now.

I suppose the person who made one of the biggest impacts on my life was my father. He was a good man. He was an honest man. I learned a great deal from him, not because he lectured - he never lectured - but because of his great example. I never heard my father tell a lie. He was a humble man, a modest man. He did not exaggerate. He was the master of understatement. He loved me and I loved him. I felt a strength that emanated from him. He trusted me, and I believe the biggest impact he had on me was that he believed in me.

My father passed away in 1982. During his life he never heard the word "Melaleuca" . yet he had a tremendous impact on this business. Through his great example he taught honesty and hard work and ethics. He loved almost everyone, and everyone loved him. He had many friends. He loved animals. He taught us kids to stay out of debt and to live within our means.

We had a little farm in northern Idaho, and it was paid for. We bought our clothes at the Salvation Army and the Goodwill Thrift store . they may not have been in style, but they were paid for. We had a 1957 Rambler station wagon . and it was paid for. Dad lived what he believed. He walked his talk. He taught by his example, and he was gentle in his teaching.

I remember one evening, when I was about ten years old, the family was sitting at the table, eating dinner. My mother mentioned that a house had burned down in Sandpoint, the nearest town. I had always had a fascination with fire, and as I imagined the excitement of that event I exclaimed, "I would love to see a house burn down!" My father grew quiet and did not say much for the rest of the evening. I believe he knew I played with matches from time to time, and he was worried. Early the next morning, at 5:30 a.m., he got me up to help with the daily milking and feeding chores. It took just over an hour to do chores, and as we finished Dad picked up a hammer, a saw, and some nails, and we walked to a little lot behind the old chicken coop. He had me help him gather up some boards that were lying around, and then he announced: "We're going to build a house." And we did build a house! It was a little house, about four feet by three feet and about three feet tall. It had a chimney and a fireplace and fancy windows with little window frames and a porch at the front door. And then, to finish it off, we built a little picket fence around it. We spent all day on it, and when it was finished it was beautiful - a masterpiece!

And then Dad said, "Ok, son . burn it down." At first I thought he was kidding. But I could soon tell he was serious. I was torn with the emotion of destroying something that had become precious as we worked together to build something so wonderful. I resisted at first, but Dad repeated his instruction: "Let's burn it down, son." As I ran off to the house to get the matches, I had time to contemplate what Dad was doing, and I smiled inside myself. He was worried about that comment I had made the night before!

I returned with the matches, and we built a little fire beside the wooden fireplace, deep inside the little house. At first the smoke came out the chimney, then out the windows. Soon flames were shooting out the back windows, and then the front ones, and before long the entire house was enveloped in flames. The wood crackled, the flames shot higher. Then the roof began to sag, and finally caved in. Then the walls fell in, and the last of the little house was consumed. Finally the fire began to die out, and soon there was nothing but ashes.

As we walked back toward the house, Dad put his arm around my shoulder and asked, "Well, son, you've seen a house burn down now . is that kind of what you wanted?" I said, "You bet, Dad!" He asked, "Do you feel that you need to see any more homes burn down?" I said, "No, Dad." He said, "Great, son." And that was all that he said. He never lectured to me on the reasons for what we had just done, or what he was trying to teach. He just said, "Great, son," and he never spoke of that incident again. But I knew what he had taught, and he knew that I knew.

My dad was a wise man, and I continue to strive to be like him. He had such an impact on me. And I can tell you that because of what - and how - he taught, even without knowing it, he has had a tremendous impact on me and also on this business. Much of what I believe in today I learned from him. It is hard to know what I would be doing today if I had not had the influence of my father in my life, but it is extremely doubtful I would be writing a president's message. It is equally doubtful that Melaleuca would exist as it does today.

My father is a great example of the powerful influence that one good man can have on our lives - and therefore the lives of others. Without knowing it, Dad has had a tremendous influence on tens of thousands of people. We do not have to do great, newsworthy things to have a great influence on this world. We only need to live a life that others can follow. It is impossible to measure the impact that one life can have on thousands of others. My father's life is a great reminder of the power of that universal principle.

I can promise you that you are making an impact on the lives around you right now. That impact will not only be felt in this generation, but in future generations as well. It might be good for all of us to stop and think from time to time about what effect our example, our words and our behavior is having on others. Like a ripple on a pond, our lives will create a much broader impact than we will ever know.

Sincerely,

Frank

(Reprinted from the September 1996 issue of Melaleuca Country.)

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