What I learned about living from a
chainsaw
The first time I used a
chainsaw, I had to go to a chiropractor afterwards.
I borrowed a neighbor’s
saw, fired it up and began cutting. I
cut and cut and cut working at that thing for a long time. Finally the tree fell and when I turned off
the saw, my arm was tingling and numb.
I’d pulled something in the effort!
On another day, my
brother-in-law helped cut down and cut up a tree in just minutes. I told him my story, and he said the chain
must have been dull. “Sharpen it or buy
a new one next time,” was his advice.
The story made a broader lesson
for me than just tree trimming. If life is
more labored than necessary, here’s what I learned.
- Turn off the chainsaw: Stop. Be still.
It cannot be fixed while still in motion.
- Remove the chain from its
housing: Get away
from the work environment. For me,
this is my dock. It’s a quiet place
on the pond out back. Pausing and
removing myself from work automatically places me in another frame of
mind. In that separation, it’s not
uncommon to see what needs to be done differently…but more about that in
another blog entry. I’ll give it a
rest for the day.
That time on the dock does make for a sharp man! I often have to walk away and come back too...the key is being still, and that is not my natural first instinct.
ReplyDelete