Where did “Out of Luck” come from?
What does it mean? And why a turtle?
Stan Miller, my high school history teacher in Luck, Wisconsin, had a picture on the upper left-hand corner of his classroom blackboard of a turtle on a log extended over a pond. The turtle had its head extended, looking forward. Below the picture it said, “Behold the turtle who makes progress only when he sticks his neck out.” When feeling threatened, a turtle pulls its head, legs and tail into its hard, protective shell, but when doing so it cannot walk. So there is no forward motion unless a turtle is sticking its neck out.
I always liked the poster for both its physical truth and strength as a metaphor for life. I started sticking my neck out regularly as a Junior High and High School student. Whether on the football field, in speech class, track and field, on the wrestling mat, or at home when my father took to one of his abusive tirades, I intentionally stuck my neck out to improve or correct the situation. Most often I was successful — sometimes I was not — but I was successful often enough to gain congressional appointment and acceptance at the United States Military Academy at West Point. No-one would have predicted it.
As a freshman at West Point though, sticking one’s neck out was discouraged, and the new “pond” I had entered was much larger than the one I had left. Despite being a salutatorian of my HS with more than adequate ACTs to gain acceptance, I struggled early in everything except physical fitness, needing much assistance to keep up academically and I was fearful of failing out. My learned tendency to be bold and creative also garnered unfavorable attention of upper classmen who imposed rigorous discipline and correction, which did not help my academic situation. In that challenging first year I was fortunate to have fallen into friendship with young men who remain dearest friends. My friend Rob decided we needed nicknames – which of course he would assign. Despite not knowing anything about that high school blackboard, Rob decided my nickname would be Turtle, perhaps for my determined but plodding progress. It must have been an apt nickname for my layman-like approach, because it stuck for 4 years of college and until today for some.
Later, during our Junior or Senior year, we were asked to provide a paragraph to go with our Senior picture in the Howitzer, the annual USMA yearbook. Rather than writing our own descriptors, our crew’s method was to turn it over to the friend group and trust the others to write something memorable to capture the essence of the moment. Here is what my friends wrote, birthing the Out of Luck brand, though I did not know it at the time.
Almost forty years later when I was writing Lessons of a Layman, I was challenged to create an imprint for the book’s press image. After taking some developmental time, seeking input from friends, and remembering the fellows who stood with me through dark and hard times, I chose the image and branding you see here. It symbolizes the early aspiration of a small-town boy and the struggle but ultimate success through my college experience. It also represents a memory of those who were there along the way, as a tribute to their loyalty, kindness, and camaraderie. . . the kind I fear too few people experience any more.
To me the Out of Luck turtle represents the journey, and all the kind souls, strong mentors, and wonderful friends life can present to you if only you find the courage to stick out your neck, take a chance, and be responsible for your decisions along the way.
