"Success"

 

Mount Robson

So, what is success, anyway?  Is it making pots of money?  Is it achieving public acclaim?  Winning medals or awards? 

How do YOU define 'success'?

For me I wanted to be able to spend my life doing something that held my interest, that I could spend a lifetime learning about, that satisfied me on many levels - intellectual, yes, but also physical.  I was interested in writing, unsure I would be any good at it.  I didn't want to teach in the schools, but found that I was quite happy teaching weaving.

Success meant that I was doing it well enough that I could earn enough money to *keep* doing it.

And I really liked the feeling of helping others.  Not so that they might shower me with gratitude, but that they were also able to enjoy weaving in much the same way I enjoy it.  Happiness around me makes me happier.

I had a Plan about how to reach my Goal.  And frankly, living a life isn't that much different from climbing a mountain.  You set your sights on the peak.  You assess the terrain.  You decide on what you need in order to get up there.  And once you have done all the preparation you can, it is one step at a time.

No I have not climbed to the peak of Mount Robson, but I have climbed to the glacier lake at the base of it.  Which was not exactly an easy journey in itself.  It's not an impossible hike, but it's not insignificant, either.

The pathway to success is much the same.  Set a Goal.  Form a Plan.  Prepare yourself as best you can.  And then go do it.  It may require changing a route.  It may involve more rest stops along the way than anticipated.  But it won't happen without putting one foot in front of the other.

Sometimes you get part way there and decide that wasn't actually what you wanted after all.  And you go another direction entirely (back home to soak your blisters, sometimes).

But every step of the way can be a discovery.  We took our dog with us, and at times it was her sense of wonder and excitement (SQUIRREL!)   (PORCUPINE!)  (RASPBERRIES!) and then her utter exhaustion which meant she would simply lay down and fall sound asleep - and then spring up again to tackle the next leg. 

Both of the trips I made the weather was fine - partially cloudy so that the sun didn't beat down on us, not wet, not even very cold at night.  The views from the higher elevations down into the valleys below were breathtaking.  And even though it was hard physical effort, it felt like standing on top of the world.  What a wonderful world it was.

In many ways I feel the same sense of wonder and awe about weaving.  It's a different scale, of course.  But it has been the same approach:  Goal, Plan, Proceed.  

At times I have had to stop, reassess, change what I was doing.  Take detours.  Build bridges.  Stop going in one direction and choose another.

But I still find myself enjoying the physical aspect of weaving, the intellectual, the ties to the weaving community.  And I still enjoy sharing what I know with anyone who wants to hear it.