The Fellowship

Most of us are familiar with the Lord of the Rings. We've either read the books or seen the movie series. A central part of the story is the fellowship of the ring. This is the group of characters that come together to support Frodo the Hobbit and his quest to destroy the ring and save middle-earth. The fellowship is a group of characters each with different strengths. The fellowship is put together primarily by Gandalf the wizard who continues to manage it through the stories until the quest is successfully completed.

The story centers around Frodo who must carry the burden of the Ring in order to destroy it.  This quest takes him through a series of what seem to be impossible obstacles that he must overcome. He's able to do that with the help of other members of the fellowship. But in the end, he must also depend on his own inner strengths and the continuous belief by other members of the fellowship in those strengths.

On the days when Frodo feels most overwhelmed (and they come often during his quest), his friend Sam is always at his side with unflinching support and encouragement. His stubborn support for his friend is an essential part of the success of the fellowship.

Gandalf is a complex character that brings a number of important elements to the fellowship. He is a source of wisdom and humor and a teacher of how to pause and assess what lies ahead. He also brings the power of Middle Earth technology in this case called wizardry that gets the fellowship through some of its darkest times. He is also front and center for major decisions.

Aragorn is a fearless warrior with a compassionate and wise side. He leads at the center of major conflicts but always keeps in mind his empathy and commitment to the cause.

Each of the other members of the fellowship bring their unique strengths. Some balance each other off in very useful ways like Gimli the dwarf and Legolas the elf. Others like the two additional hobbits Peregrin and Merry seem to not bring distinctive additional strengths but end up contributing as well.

Throughout the quest, the fellowship encounters other ‘fellow travelers’ who helped them on their way. The recognition of those characters and getting them to contribute is essential.

As I speak with parents who have children with dyslexia, I often get the question, what is my role in the quest to have my child succeed. One of the primary answers to that question is that you must lead the formation of the fellowship that will support your child to be successful. And it's not just the initial formation but the management of it overtime. The parents must take on the Gandalf role of providing spiritual leadership for the quest, helping to manage and balance the fellowship members, and providing wisdom especially for the big decisions that need to be made. They also must understand and recognize when additional fellow travelers need to be added to the mix. There is no magic formula but it requires constant attention and hard decisions.

In future articles we will talk about some of these essential members of the fellowship and additional fellow travelers that we've encountered on our journey