I am often dismayed by my own lack of skills. I’m not sure if it’s a lack of genuine interest and curiosity or just a lack of self-confidence and belief but it is rather astonishing how little I know and can do. My wife is often exasperated at my lack of knowledge and skills. Quite frequently this leads her to simply doing a task herself instead of asking me to.
Can I do car repairs, oh heavens no, that necessitates a trip to the repair shop. My friend once told me that he changed the brakes on his car by watching a YouTube video….I was surprised and instantly disappointed in myself, I can watch videos as well as anyone, but I decided it was probably for the best that I have no desire to attempt brake repairs as that could go disastrously wrong.
Can I do basic carpentry, not at all, I have a hard time driving a straight nail. Plumbing and electrical repairs are way out of my skill set and quite frankly I would be slightly fearful that I would make whatever the problem was only worse. I can perhaps change a tire in an emergency if I follow the instructions in the owners manual and I had my glasses handy.
I am quite capable of following instructions so I can put together stuff, you know the stuff you buy that says rather ominously on the side of the box “some assembly required”……usually my wife will come and check on my progress after an hour or so, her presence casting a shadow over me with a gentle inquiry of….. “so, how’s it going, need any help ?”
No matter my progress I confidently exclaim that….. “I’m almost done and just a few more things to tighten”…..this is of course an obvious lie as there are half of the pieces and parts scattered on the floor and a pile of screws, bolts, nuts and washers that I hope are just extras. She usually sighs and leaves me alone in my misery of assembly, her sigh saying so much. But unless I need an extra pair of hands I can follow the instructions to completion and I proudly stand over my assembled work hours later showing it off like a sculptor who just created a masterpiece.
I’m awed by those talented individuals who can see a pile of wood and construct a piece of furniture or a person who can walk into an empty room and envision a cozy space with just the right wall decorations and properly spaced furniture so the room has a certain flow and warmth. I know that most people aren’t born as carpenters or interior designers, except Jesus was a carpenter so maybe he was born with those skills, but most people spend hours acquiring said skills. Perhaps this is my weakness, I never really had an interest in spending so much time on something that it turned into a skill……but as I age there is one skill I wish I had and that is the ability to play an instrument.
Much like my inability to drive a nail or change the brake pads on a car, I have zero musical talent. I can’t sing, dance, read music or carry a tune. My musical ability peaked when I was a teenager and I could make a mix tape on my stereo adjusting the knobs just so to get the perfect balance of bass and treble. I wish I would have kept those mix tapes as it would be some sort of tangible proof of musical ability but now I just open the Pandora app on my phone to get a mix tape type listening experience.
What I would really like would be to learn how to play the guitar or piano….I want to be the old guy on the beach strumming a guitar at sunset or the guy at the piano jauntily playing a sing-along as everyone joins in. I suppose it’s never too late to learn a skill, it just takes time and interest and commitment. So perhaps one day I’ll find the time, I’ll make a commitment and learn a useful skill, one that doesn’t involve an instruction manual and doesn’t cause my wife to sigh plaintively.
Take Care….Peace and Love
John
John's Blog 