Steve Patterson: Have you ever seen a turtle sitting on a fence post?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“I need Thee, O, I need Thee
Every hour I need Thee
O bless me now, my Savior
I come to Thee “

(1873) Words: Annie S. Hawks; Music: Dr. Robert Lowry

 

My dear friend, long time Mississippi Agriculture Commissioner, the late Jim Buck Ross, was quite a character and one of the most canny politicians I’ve ever known.

Jim Buck and I became inseparable friends while I was on the staff of Governor William Winter. In the fall of 1980, Governor and Mrs. Winter were required to be in Oxford one Saturday for an Ole Miss football game and asked me and Commissioner Ross to host a luncheon/reception in their absence for United States Secretary of Agriculture Bob Bergland at the Governors’ Mansion. Jim Buck and I planned a full day of typical Mississippi activities for the Jimmy Carter cabinet member. We began with a breakfast of country ham, red eye gravy, grits, eggs, French Camp molasses and blueberry pancakes at the Jackson farmers market, then toured Jim Buck’s pet project, the Mississippi Agriculture museum in Jackson.

Prior to the luncheon, we held a press conference with Secretary Bergland at the Governor’s Mansion. We invited to the luncheon about fifty agriculture leaders from the cotton, soybean, poultry, catfish, cattle, and blueberry sectors as well as academics from Mississippi State and Alcorn State universities and 4-H, and Future Farmers of America leaders. After a delicious lunch of catfish and gulf shrimp, the remainder of the afternoon was spent discussing agricultural policy and exploring new economic opportunities with this diverse group of Mississippians. The day was a grand success and Mississippi’s relationship with the United States Department of Agriculture had never been stronger.

A little over a decade later, I was elected State Auditor and Jim Buck was still Mississippi’s Commissioner of Agriculture .

Jim Buck Ross was the most cagey, cunning, conniving politician I’ve ever known (and I’ve known a few), but I loved him still.

In my first year as Auditor, I saw first-hand, on two different occasions, just how he operated and why he was so successful in achieving his goals. He was legendary for getting whatever he wanted, and the Mississippi Legislature never, and I mean NEVER, said “No” to Commissioner Ross.

Ole Jim Buck operated under the old school rule that it was always easier to get forgiveness than it was to seek permission. He had no qualms about asking for forgiveness and always made a very compelling case as to why it should be granted.

My first encounter with Jim Buck’s savvy style came when he called to set up a meeting with me in the State Auditor’s Office. From my perch on the top floor of my office, I watched as he and his staff entourage emerged from a Department of Agriculture van. They were a full hour early, and began unloading no less than 50 different bouquets of white roses, freshly cut from the Agriculture museum’s rose garden. He then proceeded to give bunches of roses to every woman in my office and gentlemanly chat with each one and anyone else he encountered.

Finally he made his way to my office and laid it on especially thick with my receptionist and personal staff. After a few minutes of pleasantries, he got right down to business and began his obviously rehearsed request for forgiveness. Jim Buck had completed a very small transaction that violated multiple statutes and was seeking to secure my forgiveness knowing that we would soon be auditing his books and were likely to find the violation. With little hesitation and a lot of diplomatic talk, I finally said I could not help him and would definitely take exception to the transaction in the final audit report .

We shook hands, said our goodbyes, and parted ways.

I had made the right decision and that was the end of the matter; or so I thought.

Little did I know the cagey old Commissioner had circled back through my office and humbly let everyone know I “Refused” to help him! I was fairly new to my job and did not fully appreciate the human factor involved until it was too late. My auditors, secretaries and various staff began whispering about how hard I’d been on the aging Jim Buck. Several of the older ladies stopped speaking to me altogether for a bit. I learned my lesson. Nonetheless , we took exception to the transaction in the final Audit report.

Only a few moths later, Jim Buck called me. “Son, I need to see you tomorrow at 2:00 if you are available?”

“Yes sir, I’ll be expecting you then,” I responded.

This time I was more prepared, although I had no idea what he was up to, of course. Around 1:00, I called several of my staff into my office in advance of the Commissioner’s visit. Sure enough, we watched through my window that same van, with that same entourage, start unloading roses, except this time they were red roses, which led me to believe this was probably a more serious problem.

As Jim Buck slowly wove his way up to my office, Deputy State Auditor Tommy Dyson began to speculate about what the legend was seeking.

This time I asked Tommy to sit in on the meeting to help me navigate what I was sure to be a big ask.

This time there was no friendly small talk. Jim Buck came loaded for bear. He tossed his Stetson on the coffee table, looked me dead in the eye and asked me a rhetorical question, “Son, have you ever seen a turtle sitting on a fence post?”

“No Sir, I don’t believe I have,” I cautiously replied.

Then Jim Buck said, “Well, if you ever do, you can bet he had some help getting up there, and that’s what I’m here for — I need some help!”

His request this time was very similar to the one I had already denied, but it had just enough nuances that gave Deputy Dyson a reason to maneuver. Tommy remembered an old Attorney General’s opinion that kinda, sorta, if broadly applied, fit the circumstances of the Commissioner’s dilemma. We printed off a copy of the opinion and attached a letter from me accepting the broad interpretation.  There was no corruption involved, and the expenditure was a heck of a good deal for the state. This time, it made all the sense in the world to help Jim Buck Ross. After all, we had the backing of an AG opinion, and the real beneficiary was the State of Mississippi.

As Jim Buck left my office, I grabbed his hand and with a broad smile said, “Now, Commissioner, you go back the same way you came in and explain to everyone how much help I’ve been, and what a good public servant I am!”

He replied simply, “Son, I’ve got you covered,” winked at me and said goodbye.

“I need help!” Those three words have always been painful for me to say. I had no problem asking favor for others, in fact I was viewed as a first-rate political fundraiser for others, and had a hard-nosed reputation for cajoling legislative leaders for causes I deemed worthy. But to ask for myself was and is, even today, among the most distasteful things I’ve ever had to do. Why? The sin of pride has always gotten in my way. I still struggle with the depravity of my sinful self. I suppose I’ve always viewed asking for help as a sign of weakness, a demonstration of failure, a vulnerability I can’t bring myself to share .

As my time grows shorter, I’ve come to realize it’s not the act of asking that paralyzes me. It’s what underpins the request: the fear of showing vulnerability, the fear of rejection, the fear of looking weak and needy, and, most profoundly, the fear of being a burdensome friend rather than a productive, helpful one.

I believe in a sovereign God, and I trust His word. My prideful sin of not asking my contemporaries for help has never applied to my God. I believe His word. I believe He knows my weakness, my sinful pride, my vulnerabilities. His word is good. And, He calls me. In fact, he calls us all to cry out to Him, to trust Him, and to find rest in Him. He promises to give us hope and strength in His word that says, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in time of trouble” (Psalms 46:1), and “Fear not for I am with you, …. I will strengthen you and help you” ( Isaiah 40:10), and many other promises of God like, “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you shall find; knock and it will be opened to you” (Matthew 7:7). God’s word is everlasting, and His promises are real.

I find praying to God for help easy and satisfying, but I’ve also come to understand He has provided folks acting as instruments of his love and provision, and I should not deprive them of their own glory and admit those three words — I NEED HELP!

I learned a lot from my friend Jim Buck Ross. But perhaps the most important lesson he taught me was the means by which that turtle was able to sit on that fence post!

If you need help, ask someone for it. If you are filled with sinful pride like me, it will be one of the most courageous things you will ever do, and it will likely solve a lot of problems.

Pride will let one suffer in silence, but wisdom will overcome stubbornness and instruct us to simply say, “I need help!”

May the words of that aged hymn lodge firmly and sweetly in your heart and guide you to admit your need and ask for it.

–Steve Patterson