From Human Doing to Human Being

What does it mean to be human? Dr. Kasonde Musoma asked FWCD fifth and sixth graders to consider this question during the annual Candice Hansen Lecture, a program created to honor the life, memory and legacy of FWCD parent Candice Hansen and her spirit of love, joy, generosity and kindness. This lecture also connected with Fifth Grade Core Values Day (view the slideshow). 

Dr. Musoma, an educator and motivational speaker originally from Zambia, came to campus ready to do more than give a lecture. He sang, he joked, he moved through the audience, asked questions and invited students into the conversation. At one point, he even walked among them, explaining that he wanted to talk with students rather than talk at them. View Dr. Musoma’s presentation. 

“I want to talk to you about what it means to get human,” Dr. Musoma said. 

Dr. Musoma shared that he moved to the U.S. 30 years ago with a dream of building a good life. His career has included teaching at Texas A&M University and Texas Christian University, where he focused on leadership, ethics, global concerns and difficult dialogues. He now serves as Director of Leadership and Character Formation at Tecnológico de Monterrey in Mexico.

But it was a simple act of kindness that brought Dr. Musoma international attention. In 2017, a student at Texas A&M told him she had no childcare and could not attend class. He told her to bring the baby to class. When the baby later crawled toward him in class, Dr. Musoma picked him up and continued teaching. A video of the moment went viral, eventually leading to an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show and earning him the nickname “Professor of Kindness.” 

For Dr. Musoma, kindness isn’t a performance or a single moment. It is a way of life, a way of seeing and interacting with people. His message to FWCD students centered on moving from being “human doings” to being “human beings.” He shared three ideas – humanize, humorize and humility – encouraging students to see the person in front of them, use humor to build connections, and approach others with humility. 

“Be inspired by me, don’t be impressed by me,” he said. “Because when you’re impressed by someone, they become your standard. I don’t want to be your standard because there’s more for you to do than I’ve done.” 

He also challenged students to think about what it means to be rich. “Some people are so poor all they have is money,” he said. Instead, he encouraged students to build a different kind of currency, one based on relationships, kindness, generosity, love and connection. He told them to consider what they are doing each day to contribute to what he calls “relational currency.” 

Dr. Musoma also introduced students to Sawubona, a Zulu greeting that means “I see you.” For him, kindness begins with truly seeing another person: asking questions, listening and being curious about who they are and what they are all about. He challenges “The Golden Rule” – “Treat others the way you would like to be treated” – suggesting it really should be “Treat others the way they want to be treated.”

Throughout the presentation, Dr. Musoma connected those ideas to Ubuntu, an African philosophy often expressed as “I am because you are” and “You are because I am.” He reinforced the concept, saying we become more fully human through our relationships with one another. 

He left students with a simple commitment to carry forward, asking them to repeat after him: “I commit to take the time to see and connect with the human in front of me.” 

The message was fitting for a lecture held in Candice Hansen’s memory. Dr. Musoma reminded the students that Candice’s kindness mattered, not only to the people who knew her but also to the community that continues to celebrate her life. 

Dr. Musoma left the students with one more way to think about their potential: “You can count the number of seeds in an orange, but you can never count the number of oranges in a seed.” 

The challenge, like the legacy behind the lecture, is to plant something good and see what grows. Following the lecture, the fifth graders put that message into action, planting wildflower seeds in the flowerbeds by the School’s electronic signs. The seeds offered a fitting symbol of Dr. Musamo’s call to move from being “human doings” to “human beings” – to slow down, see and connect with the people around us, and choose kindness in ways both big and small.