I have a confession to make.  I’m not good at everything.
Oh I reckon I would make a good TA or Tradesman’s Assistant.  I am great at keeping a site tidy and providing what is needed when needed.  I am very aware of potential danger and clear the deck so it does not come into play.  And when it is needed, I ensure a safe process is followed.
That does not mean that things never go wrong.  Two instances spring immediately to mind.  Something I set up was unknowingly inadequate.  Another was the work of someone else that I inherited that impacted negatively on another (fortunately the implications were not dire)
But having said that, I reckon recognising my weaknesses and being able to ask for help is a good thing.  It can be embarrassing to acknowledge inadequacy.  Guys in particular seem to like to give the impression that nothing is impossible to them.   I think that can be true as long as it is recognised that something may be impossible for one but for the right team it is not.
There are things I know I am good at and things I know I am terrible at.  Yesterday was a good example for me.  Emptying the baptismal font.  I knew I could do it, but it was going to take probably several hours to do.  Someone contacted me to advise they had equipment that would make the job much quicker.  I availed myself of that help.  Sure enough the job was over way quicker than I had anticipated.  I was able to do other things that needed doing earlier that anticipated.
The same person showed me something else.  I mentioned yesterday a heater not having a plug attached.  Apparently, they had just wired up their whole place (they are building an independent cabin) and had an electrician check everything.  The electrician said there was nothing that had to be done that was not done in a safe and sustainable way.
I need an electrician.  It is not a strength of mine and I have no desire to go there.  The important thing for me is I know where to get the help I need.
That to me is the bottom line of every task I take on.  A certain amount I can do.  For what I can’t do I get the help I need and the job gets done. 
To me that is what teamwork is all about.  Using strengths and making up for weaknesses.  A team is like life without limits.

Well yesterday was a day.  Bit of a potpourri day really.  Had a bit of everything.
Merril is making up 9 bags.  Stuff is going in them from her dad to be given to those he wanted them to go to.  The work is intricate and involves getting material, cutting and sewing.  The sort of thing that requires undisturbed concentration. 
I know when I have a task that requires my full attention it is better no one talks to me.  It is not I am anti-social, but it is not the time or place to engage me in deep and meaningful conversation.  I love having them - just not at that time.
So Merril was doing that.  I have been getting stuff together for a baptism we are involved in.  It meant finding a pool (the previous one had a leak) and anything else needed.  That meant something to blow it up.  Something to get water into the pool.
I wanted to check all worked as it should.  It had not helped that we had bought a heater online cheaper than other places and I found out one of the reasons.  It came with three wires exposed which I was supposed to put an electric plug on.  Reminds me of seeing a cartoon that claimed to show a “book maker”, and it showed just a log and axe.  For sure when something is in its raw state and essential stuff is not done it is cheaper.
Anyway seeing that had been a rude shock.  Merril came and gave me a hand.  We had what was needed and had seen it worked.  I got all the stuff together and put it in the car.
We then drove to where it was going, and operation “baptismal font” started.  It all went well and has water added and is ready to go.  I realized in the evening that the pool was probably overfull, and people were going to be in it.  So this morning we are heading to the place early to take out some water.
Once it was set up, we went for lunch.  Then we came home.  Merril continued to make bags and I loitered.  I asked if there was anything I could do but thankfully for me there was nothing.  It was intricate work not for a novice. 
So it was a good day.  I admit I will be glad when my part is over, and it has worked.  It is one I will put up to experience knowing in the future I have been there and done that.  But that is the future.  This is now.

Someone said something I found really interesting yesterday.
“I need to be careful what I say because I’m listening.”  That to me was a new spin on stuff I’ve heard.   All about the importance of what I say.  Even in the hard times when I am not feeling much beyond grief or anger or disappointment.
I am big on realism.  I will not deny my feelings but my feeling are passing and do not represent me.  Feelings come and go but belief remains.  To me it matters big time that I do not declare like it is a closed book my feelings alone.
The thing about feelings is that sometimes I am joyful and sometimes I am sad or some other emotion.  For my whole life they have oscillated.  If I were to live my life based on feelings alone, I would go from one extreme to the other.  I do not deny them and some I go with and some I battle against.
What matter to me is who I am.  That is constant.  It is based on something beyond my invention or feelings at a particular time.  It is that that I declare despite how I feel.  That to me is reality.  In private moments I express my feelings.  But I know there is light beyond the storm.  My feelings may be a valid expression of my human nature, or they may be something sinister that will destroy me if I let them take hold.
Whatever the case I will not declare as permanent something impermanent.  I will state what is lasting, what is beyond the ups and downs of my emotions.
The thing is (and I am hearing this a lot lately) declarations can change for the better.  Some may say it is a form of brain washing but sometimes my brain could do with a good wash.
It is important to me that I look beyond my feelings.  Someone (and I do not remember who) said to me “never make a decision when you are down.”  That has proven to be great advice.
So often when I am down, I make decisions that undo a lot of good work.  To me it is better to declare what is real and ride it out rather than act in haste.
I honestly think growth is based on weathering the good times and bad.  I want to grow as a person.  I have found the sun is not always shining where I am.  But that does not mean the sun is not shining.