24 - I’m a jack of all trades…
I distinctly remember standing at the bottom of a large tree, crying. We were at my cousin’s house and everyone had decided to climb. My sister, four years older than me, was as high as a person could go without breaking a limb. My three cousins, all younger than me, were also in the tree. I was crying because I wanted to join them, but I couldn’t without a boost. Honestly, a boost probably wouldn’t have done it. A ladder was most likely the only solution.
Looking back, the first limb couldn’t have been that far up. Maybe 4 feet? 6 feet? The others were able to dig their fingers into the rough bark, finding little nibs of space just big enough to give them a short heave before they grabbed the next spot. When they reached the first split, the hard part was over. Sure, they had to be careful when reaching or shimmying to another branch, but the most difficult part was behind them. The bit I couldn’t get past.
Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.
This quote is attributed to Albert Einstein.
Everyone who learns a little differently loves this saying, including me. I am not a monkey. My problem is that I’m not a fish either.
When I started writing this, I tried to think about what animal I am. I couldn’t figure it out. I’m not like just one. So then I started thinking of hybrid animals. But I’m not a hybrid of two either. I’m this mash up of like ten or twenty of them. But even if I mashed several of them together, I wouldn’t have all of the characteristics of all of the animals. I would only have a little bit.
Since I was young, I have told myself I am a ‘Jack of all trades, master of none.’ Because I can do a lot of things sufficiently, or enough to get by, but nothing that would make someone believe that I had mastered the skill. I’ve mentioned that before.
I can cook very good meals. But I would never want to open a restaurant, or even cook for people outside my home on a regular (or even semi-regular) basis. I’m not that good.
I can sing, and at one time was thought to be quite talented. But it wasn’t enough to compete against all of the other people in the world whose one soul passion is to sing. I’m not that good.
I love to make things with wood. I love sanding. Starting with a rough paper, and gradually working to a fine grade sandpaper. I love painting the wood, playing around with watering down the colors, and layering them. I love the accomplishment of finishing the piece and hanging it in my home. But I don’t have all of the tools to properly build things, or piece them together correctly. I don’t know how to do that. I’m not that good.
I am a teacher and have enjoyed the challenge of presenting material in a way that my children understand. Even though they all learn in completely different ways. But sometimes I get frustrated and am easily distracted. I’m not that good.
When I was a child, I enjoyed making up stories. My most famous is named, “The Purple-Haired Girl.” The story tells of how a girl accidentally colors her hair green. No, that isn’t a typo. I couldn’t figure out how someone could legitimately, accidentally color their hair purple, so I changed it to green. But the title stayed the same. I’m not that good.
I enjoy comedy and watching performances. I love the buildup of a story, not knowing where it will end. The punchline that is a surprise, but also funny. But when I get excited, my mouth doesn’t move as fast as my brain and I stutter. I’m not that good.
Before my back surgery, I was involved in all home renovation projects. I’ve cut and laid tile, painted and textured walls, sanded and stained handrails, installed or fixed pipes under sinks, rewired light fixtures for a fan, installed a front door including hardware, hung shelves, removed walls, fixed toilets, repaired doors, and caulked. I’m sure there are more I’m not remembering. But to be honest, I’m not that good.
Jack of all trades, master of none…
Jack of all trades, master of none…
Jack of all trades, master of none…
It was hard to zero in and focus on one talent to expand when I didn’t have one single talent that was worthy of that focus. How could I help others with my purpose when I couldn’t figure out what that purpose actually was???
When my daughter went away to college, there were several days of orientation that she was required to attend. There were activities, separate from the students, that parents were expected to attend. It was horrible and I hope to never have to do that again.
But out of that entire experience, there was one nugget of gold that I was able to extract. Like a prospector diligently dipping his pan and looking for that special bright gem, I sifted through all of the drama. This glorious piece came from the dean. I have no idea what he talked about. All I remember was that he said this:
A jack of all trades is a master of none … but oftentimes better than a master of one
I had spent my entire life repeating over and over the first part. I was a jack of all trades and I had not mastered even one of them. This made me sad, as if I was not enough. As if everyone else had something that I did not have access to.
That’s not true. I just didn’t know the rest of the quote.
It’s ok if someone has one gift and they are amazing at that particular thing. The best! But for me, it’s ok that I am not a master.
My purpose involves a lot of little things. Things that, when evaluated individually, seem insignificant. When I put them together, those tiny pieces, they become a great picture. A masterpiece!
I’m not standing at the bottom of the tree anymore and the tears are gone. The tree isn’t mine to climb.
My purpose, the one I was created to do, is so much more.
There has been some curiosity about how I finally realized my purpose. Like everything, it was a process.
When I started journaling, I wrote about everything. I put down silly thoughts about what I was going through, mind-bending life-altering words from heaven, and everything in-between.
At one point, when I had been working for an extended period of time, I jotted down how hard this process was. But I also enjoyed it. I loved what I was learning and wanted to share the information with everyone! But we are all different, and are here for different reasons. How to help people find their purpose? And that was when, in a random, messy scrawl, I wrote what turned out to be my purpose: inspire others to find their purpose so they could live their best life, just like me.
The part that I ended up putting at the beginning actually came later. While trying to help the youth through some very difficult situations, I didn’t know what to do. I was frustrated that I didn’t have the answers and didn’t know what to tell them. In a fit of frustration I yelled, “What can I say??” And the answer was immediately and clearly shown to me: just love them. So simple, yet so profound!
So that is how I got here. I’m not perfect and I make mistakes. A lot of mistakes. A lot. But I’m trying.
That’s all I can do.