November 2006

Where are the shirt‑wearers?

by Dr. Kevin Pallis and Dr. Ed Plentz

In Native American culture, there was a designated shirt‑wearer who was the protector of the people, the helpless, the aged, the crippled, the young and everyone else within the tribe. This shirt‑wearer was the voice of the people. All major decisions were presented to shirt‑wearers in search of their invaluable guidance and wisdom. They embodied a bigger vision than self gain.

Every person has encountered a shirt‑wearer at some point in his or her life. They are the ones who have a purpose, a responsibility to the people or the cause they represent. They freely and openly share their gifts with others. They encourage and inspire. These people are a pleasure to be around. Mine was a gym teacher. He saw great potential in me and made it his business to mentor me in physical fitness. In the '60s, he told of a time in the future when people would stop taking care of their bodies. He said that there was even talk of stopping physical education in our schools. He was a shirt‑wearer and was proud to be an ambassador for fitness.

In our great profession, you don't see many shirt‑wearers for chiropractic. You see many shirt‑wearers for non‑chiropractic income‑producing activities. True chiropractic shirt‑wearers have to be different. They have to have a love and a pride for being a family chiropractor. They must be oriented towards the next generation, rather than towards being a fixer or therapist for adult musculoskeletal problems.

Shirt‑wearers have to be strong and not shrink when faced with criticism or skepticism. They know the catastrophic effects of the Vertebral Subluxation Complex and its effects on society. That's right, society. Sick people create a sick world. All the symptomatic relief imaginable will not change the health paradigm. It will take the shirt‑wearers in our profession to stand up and do what needs to be done.

To illustrate this point, allow me to relate something that happened recently. A few minutes after I'd finished speaking to a group of DCs, some of them came back into the office with two Hispanic women and a blonde, five‑ or six‑year old boy who had one of the DC's shirts wrapped around his waist. It turns out that this little boy was lost from his mother and couldn't speak English. The women, along with the DCs had found him wandering in the parking lot in a state of panic, naked except for the shirt he was wearing, which was only covering his stomach.

The women, who also didn't speak English, knew exactly what to do. They went next door and bought a pair of shorts for the little boy. Upon closer inspection, we noticed burn marks on the boy's legs and that the shirt he was wearing covered bandages on his abdomen and chest, concealing more burns. We called the police and they were able to locate the boy's mother. Apparently, she'd been out food shopping while the boy was sleeping. Imagine the panic and horror the child experienced when he woke up looking for his mother and found nobody home.

After the police officer took the little boy away, many of the DCs wept at the tragedy. This was child abuse. Yet, to some of the DCs in attendance, the event wasn't a big deal and was soon forgotten, leaving no impact on their lives. The shirt‑wearers, however, knew that they had just witnessed the lethal effects of the VSC on humanity. What kind of vitamin would you like to give a mother so she would behave like a mother? What type of therapy or therapeusis would you like to do on a parent to make him or her act like a parent? This is the dimension that shirt‑wearers live in. We know that healthy people create a healthy world. We bring true human expression to the masses. We keep the promise. We are the voice of the children.

This boy was let down by his mother. Criminologists agree that most juvenile criminals are let down by those entrusted to raise them. They grow up angry, peerless, and they later exact their revenge on people who had nothing to do with their past. This is our time in history to stand up and be seen as shirt‑wearers for the people. Let's show the world what a group of like‑minded chiropractors can do! Have the courage to become a shirt‑wearer today.

(The New Renaissance is a movement of passionate chiropractors dedicated to changing the world. The leader in patient education since 1977, the Mentor IV Coaching Program is a step‑by‑step navigational guide that embodies the very essence of The New Renaissance vision of healthier people creating a healthier world. Without patient education, your patients won't "get it." To learn more about The New Renaissance, contact world headquarters at 800‑525‑3879.)