Tabono is Dedication

By Coach Mike

So far we have explored kaizen and how it symbolizes our team’s core value of mental toughness and ‘ohana which symbolizes our value of family. This time we are delving into our third core value of dedication. When researching this I came across an African Adinkra symbol called tabono. Tabono means “oar” or “paddle” in the Adinkra language of Western Africa. It is a symbol of unity of purpose, strength, confidence and hard work to reach a destination or goal. Drawn as four conjoint paddles/oars, tabono symbol means that one cannot simply achieve greatness without sacrificing, working hard and staying strong.

How does this parallel our core value of dedication?

What does dedication really mean? Defining dedication will allow us to uncover the true meaning of tabono and how it relates to the team.

The dictionary states it is the quality of being dedicated or committed to a task or purpose. I don’t think this does the word justice. There are about 16 different synonyms listed in the dictionary such as commitment, devotion, faithfulness and loyalty to just name a few. It can be interpreted many ways and it truly depends on many different circumstances. I think a better way to go about defining this complicated word is through experiences and people. The experiences I’ve had myself and watching people that inspire me to go deeper into the meaning of what it truly means to be dedicated or have tabono.

Purpose

Why do you do something? By joining BLUE WAVE, you share the team’s purpose on becoming the best person you can become through the dedication of mastery in the sport of swimming. Dedication to this purpose gives us common ground to stand upon in our individual journeys. When we have purpose, it helps us navigate the choices we must make each day. From what to eat, when to go to bed, how we treat each other, etc…

This states that none of us are just here to be better swimmers but by dedicating ourselves to this one unifying purpose we develop the tools to be the best version of ourselves. This team and sport give us a playground to test ourselves and learn from each other with the support of our ‘ohana. It will allow us to develop the strength, confidence and work ethic through kaizen.

Why Symbolize Our Team’s Values?

Human cultures use symbols to express specific ideologies and social structures and to represent aspects of their specific culture. Thus, symbols carry meanings that depend upon one's cultural background; in other words, the meaning of a symbol is not inherent in the symbol itself but is culturally learned. A cultural symbol is a physical manifestation that signifies the ideology of a culture or that merely has meaning within a culture. Culture is an accumulation of the beliefs, traditions, language and values of a group of people. Generally, it is an object representing another to give it an entirely different meaning that is much deeper and more significant.

When we combine all these together we get this powerful symbol. It reflects who we are and what we stand for. It’s a symbol that speaks our language and is as unique as the people who make up this team.

BLUE WAVE ON 3…BLUE WAVE ON 3…1...2…3

GO BLUE WAVE!