How often are you supposed to sharpen tools? My non-handy man response is: I don’t know. I can barely use an electric drill and nearly always hurt myself when I have to bust out the hammer.
But here is what I do know about the kinds of tools I use in my adult life:
- You do have to do maintenance on tools; they don’t stay sharp without practice/proper use
- Some tools are not universal for all (similar, but different) life events; what works with one, does not (always) translate to another
- Tools break or become obsolete:
- Which does not mean you are broken
- You’re now faced with an adventurous opportunity to seek new tools (ie: skills)
I know this list to be filled with truths, and yet it still irritates me for a number of reasons. Mainly, tools are supposed to expedite results; create shortcuts. If we have to prep tools before use…. than we’re adding more steps to the already complicated game of life. I’ll just flint n’ tinder this shit already if I have to keep the tool bench in my life’s workshop up-to-date.
Well.
That’s bullshit. Because most smart(ish) people know that preparation and practice werk. Experience with success and failing are informative and necessary. No art is created without sketches. You can’t be an opera singer without hours of vocal coaching. You can’t simply unearth a groundbreaking scientific theory from a daydream, you have to work to prove it.
I used to think I needed patience to endure life’s rollercoaster of ups and downs. But this helpful saying can be improved for accuracy: I need patient persistence to keep sharpening and building new tools for my life’s toolbox.
roadside yogi 