The Achievement Program
Verse 1, The Beginning
In the beginning was the great void of plywood and the spirit of the Model Railroader did move upon the plywood and cause the track to come forth upon which the trains could run. And the Modeler was pleased and did run his trains with all enjoyment and he saith unto himself, "This is all I need, for it is good!"
And the Modelers Mates did say unto him, "Thou canst do better and more if thou embark upon the Achievement Program". And thus the Modeler did begin with the Reading of the Tomes of Rules and Regulations and after much furrowing of the brow and scratching upon the head, he determined upon his course of action.
Verse 2, The Wielding of The Wire (Electrical)
And yea verily did The Modeler wire the railroad with cables of amazing conductivity and he did draw many figures of wondrous schematic depiction. He did verily submit it all to the Lord of Acheivement and the Lord did smile upon the work and pronounced it worthy of all certification. And thus was born the first fruits of the Achievement Program.
The Modeler saith unto himself, "This Achievement Program is not the Leviathan I once believed it to be." Taking his confidence in hand, he searched the Tomes of Rules and Regulations to discover his next step along the way.
Verse 3, The Operating of the Trains (Dispatcher)
Therefore The Modeler did take up unto himself the Guidelines For Operation and with much flurry of action did bring forth the Cards of Cars and the Waybills of Wonder, giving unto his rolling stock purpose and direction. And The Modeler did gather his Mates unto him and proclaimed to them, "We must commence the Operating Sessions of Dispatching!" And Lo! The Modeler and his Mates did operate the trains upon the Layout and after laboring for Fifty Nights, the Paperwork Of Operation was submitted unto the Achievement Lord and he did pronounce it good, thus awarding the Dispatcher Certificate.
And The Modeler saith unto himself, "To be recognized by Certificate for Playing with the Trains is indeed passing marvellous!"
Then did The Modeler seek to improve his Track Plan, by the Addition of the Industries for Operation and the Running Of More Trains. He did study upon the Civil Engineering Tomes of Rules and Regulations for many a day, pondering how he might Achieve more. The Modeler did supplicate unto the Achievement Lord in the Mysteries of Turnout Making and the Achievement Lord did shine his countenance upon The Modeler and saith unto him, "Sure, mate, c'mon over to my place on Saturday, I'll show yer how it's done." And The Modeler did learn at the Workbench of the Most Supreme Achievement Lord and took from the Workbench the hallowed knowledge of the Construction of Turnouts. The Modeler then made haste to his own Layout and produced the Turnouts for the Achievement Program and in due time did submit the Hallowed Paperwork unto the Achievement Lord and he did pronounce it most wondrous! Thus was the Certifcate awarded.
Verse 5, The Writing of The Articles (Author)
Upon a time, The Modeler pored over the Tomes of Rules and Regulations and did think unto himself, "I should write about some Railroad Experiences and about Operations". Then The Modeler did bend his back to the labour and take his pen in hand to scribe mightily lo many days and nights. He laboured to bring forth the Articles for Publication and the Web Site of Model Railroad Information. And yea verily again the Achievement Lord did look upon the writings and declare them worthy of all Certification. Thus was the Author Certificate awarded.
Verse 6, The Service Unto The Organisation (Volunteer)
As time marched upon the Layout, The Modeler did ponder upon the many Services of Voluntary Assistance that had been rendered to him and determined to give back his time unto the Organisation. He did study the Tomes of Rules and determined his next course of action. Yea verily, The Modeler did turn his attention to the Serving of The Organisation and did put his shoulder to the plow, taking up the Editorship of The Magazine at which he laboured for Forty Moons to produce The Magazine. And the Achievement Lord did tally up the points for the Time of Service and did see that it was Good and Worthy of certification.
Verse 7, The Making of The Scenery (Scenery)
And The Modeler once again turned his gaze upon the barren layout, seeing that no life grew there and was moved to stretch forth his hand and Lo! There did appear grasses and flowering herbs and all manner of trees. Buildings, sidewalks, roads and all manner of man-made accoutrements did appear upon the layout, greatly Enhancing The Realism and pleasing unto The Modeler. And thus the Certifcate of Scenery was awarded, for the Achievement Lord did cause to make his countenance shine upon the work and he declared it good.
Verse 8, The Building of the Locomotives (Motive Power)
Long time did The Modeler ponder his next Certificate, for this would bring the Mastery unto him. He pondered long and read much, sifting the Tomes of Rules and Regulations. He did look upon The Building of The Locomotives and The Building of The Rolling Stock and did scratch his head greatly as they both appeared beyond his Skill. The Modeler gathered his wits and courage and plunged forward, Building the Two Locomotive Kits. And yea verily, The Modeler was well pleased with The Locomotives and there he rested from his Labours. Upon a time, The Modelers Mate, also a Judge did look upon The Locomotives and did say unto The Modeler, "Hey, you have 2 of the 3 Locos you need, all you have to do is scratchbuild one. Let me show you how..." And The Modeler did Learn of The Scratchbuilding The Locomotives and was well pleased. Yea verily, The Modeler did then complete The Locomotive of Scratchbuilding an did submit his work to the Judges and The Achievement Lord did smile upon the work and declare it worthy.
And Lo! The Achievement Lord did say unto The Modeler, "Thou art missing a piece of paperwork." The Modeler did look in puzzlement to the Achievement Lord and did utter, "I hast obeyed The Forms for the Locomotive Building your Lordship." And The Achievement Lord did look upon The Modeler with a twinkle in his eye and saith unto The Modeler, "Thou hast completed the Seven Certificates, thou Nong, Now produce for me the Form Of Mastery!" And The Modeler was much abashed and did submit the Form of Mastery and the Achievement Lord was well pleased, scribing his signature thereto the Form of Mastery. "Well Done, thou Master Modeler"
And The Modeler did smile greatly and did look upon his layout, his countenance shining like the sun! It was many-fold improved from the bare plywood and appeared Realistic and was a Joy of Operation, all thanks to the Program of Achievement. Then The Modeler did rest upon the seventh certificate and did bask in the glory of his Railroad Empire.
