my Bible and took classes in education, graduating from Marquette and going on to school at Boston College, where I earned a master’s of education degree. This purpose-filled path led my search for understanding the human condition to a corner of Kingston, Jamaica, to a landfill where everything unwanted decays. The poorest of the poor survive by searching the landfill for food, for materials to build homes, for anything with trade or sale value. The smells are unbearable and the conditions incomprehensible. Hidden among cesspool trenches, heaps of scrap metal and mounds of decaying trash live a resilient people who have a tireless work ethic, uncanny hope and tremendous faith. One day after spending time with a boy playing with a soccer ball in the dump community, I noticed he chased the bus we rode back to our suburban comfort. I wanted to know where he lived. I wanted to walk in his shoes — if only for a short while. I wanted to share with others how they too could become addicted to service. I didn’t know it at the time but that desire would grow into the concept for filming a documentary about people who live in significant poverty. Our film, 10 Dollar Perspective, highlights the hope and resilience of a few of our six billion global brothers and sisters who live on less than $10 a day. To this day I live with the wise words of Father Michael Himes, one of my professors at Boston College, echoing through my heart and mind. Father Himes said that when contemplating your calling in life, ask yourself three questions: What brings you joy? What are you good at? And how does that joy benefit others? This simple reflective exercise moved me to found an international servant leadership organization called Pivotal Directions to unite people across socioeconomic lines,
to walk with the faith-filled people of the Riverton garbage dump community and hopefully soften the barriers surrounding a marginalized people. My talent is the humble courage that allows me to step outside of my comfort zone and lead others to new perspectives. The benefit is determined by those who hold hands in solidarity and create a new reality of dignity. When I sat down to write my book, The Pivotal Life: A Compass for Discovering Purpose, Passion & Perspective, I began unpacking all the pivotal moments on my journey in order to share with others how they, too, can find the meaning of life, love, family and career purpose. The “pivotal” moments in life are those that have the power to move us in directions that are at first unimaginable, like stepping into poverty with an open heart. These special moments may not make sense at first, but we should still allow them to touch our hearts so that something much bigger can take over and push us forward with a greater awareness of purpose. Living a pivotal life is not about avoiding adversity. It is about knowing how to learn from and live with the adversity and challenge that are part of every life. Recognizing that I am on a path that intersects with others who also encounter potholes and pivotal moments makes the shared journey more purpose-filled. We are responsible to each other. Ordinary people living for others is an extraordinary life, and the passion that soars through my veins gives me hope that the life I live will truly be called pivotal. m
Jeff Wenzler, Arts ’97, is founder and executive director of Pivotal Directions Inc.; award-winning author of The Pivotal Life: A Compass for Discovering Purpose, Passion & Perspective; documentarian; co-founder of The Center for Servant Leadership and Civic Engagement at St. Thomas More Catholic High School in Milwaukee, Wis.; and motivational speaker and blogger. The documentary 10 Dollar Perspective is posted online at pivotaldirections.org.
Marquette Magazine
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