Anyone who truly practices the profession of Land Surveying will records hundreds of surveys in courthouses all over the state. Especially in your home county. The progression of ones career can be followed when comparing the earliest of surveys to the latest. As land surveyors we have the privilidge of leaving our footsteps in the public record for future generations of land surveyors to follow. However that doesn't always tell the whole story does it.
My career started when my father James E. Muth RLS #13014; needed some cheap labor. He has and does continue to mentor me everyday. I have often felt that every young land surveyor should have the benefit of this type of mentorship. It is hard to work for family and at time can strain the conventional relationship. As a kid I had to learn to grow up fast and take the hazing that every survey crew had. It was dificult but I learned early that it wasn't personal. Dad was hard on me because he expected more from me. He had the highest hopes and expectations for me and showed his disappointment through verbal incentives. Anyone whom ever spent time with working with him knows exactly what I am talking about. He motivated me to go to college and expand my knowledge because he knew I would have to learn more than he was able to teach. He pushed me to always keep moving forward and never linger on looking back.
My father did not know what to expect when I struck out for fame and fortune on my own but he knew that he had equipped me with the tools I needed. When I joined a fraternity at NMSU he was not happy. He had visions of me becoming a cast member of "Animal House". However when he learned that FarmHouse had an academic requirement and expected a high moral character he eventually warmed up to it. FarmHouse has an Object. A codex that we recited before every meeting. The Object states "The object of our fraternity is to promote good fellowship, to encourage
studiousness, and to inspire its members in seeking the best in their
chosen lines of study as well as in life. Progress shall mark our every
step; the spirit of congeniality shall reign at all times; and every
member shall be honest with himself as with his brothers. Men elected to
our membership are considered to be of good moral character, to be high
in scholarship, to have the capacity for meeting and making friends,
and to give promise of service to their fellowmen and to the world. To
be and become such may at times require a sacrifice of time, pleasures
and comforts."
I have applied this "object" to my career and my life because it fits. It speaks to the reality that as land surveyors we have a duty to our fellow men to do the best we can in every situation regardless of financial constraints and "grey areas". My father did not know it but he was the first FarmHouse man I had ever met. I have no idea what the future will have in store me or my career from today forward. However I know that without the mentor ship of my father I would have never been able to walk the path I have walked thus far.
