Sorry, but I can’t weave you a riveting tale of my Thursday in Ozarkansas. I’d be exaggerating if I said there’s nothing to tell, because every moment has the potential to be memorable. Yesterday just wasn’t eventful.
Rain dominated the morning, as expected, coming and going in waves. The wind picked up.
Smudge and I ducked out between showers and walked the wet woods. I paid close attention to what was close at hand. Details. Small things.
When we got back, I napped.
The Heeler’s pawing pulled me from slumber. It was obvious that she needed to go outside, so I got up.
She didn’t run to the door like she usually does. Instead, she dashed to the hearth, sat down next to the woodstove and barked at me.
Thanks to strong and persistent wind, the cabin had chilled to the low 60s by mid-afternoon. I hadn’t tended the fire since 4pm Wednesday, and the firebox was cold.
Smudge barked again, more insistent this time.
She didn’t have to go out after all — she wanted me to light a fire. And so I did.
Later in the afternoon, our skies turned a clear and brilliant blue.
Winds topping 50mph lashed The Mountain well into Friday’s wee hours.
The phrase “showing up” and its variants have been, well, showing up a lot in what I’ve seen and heard the last couple of weeks. Y’know what I mean? He always shows up for his team in big games. Or, in motivation-speak, Showing up is half the battle.
Literally, it simply means “being present.” But like seemingly everything else in language and culture, it’s been perverted, diluted until it’s utterly meaningless.
“Showing up” now warrants a participation trophy. Folks expect to be rewarded just for their presence, when what virtually every endeavor demands is performance.
In my opinion, we have enough people who show up. We need more people who put out.
Doing trumps dreaming. Construction is superior to concept. It’s the difference between “the man who is actually in the arena” and “those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”
If you’re not familiar with the Teddy Roosevelt speech I just quoted, you should be. Here’s the complete passage from which I drew those excerpts:
“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”
Yes, the man in the arena “shows up.” But he strives. He dares. He fails. He achieves.
He triumphs.
Cold and timid souls are mere spectators. They’re the quitters. They have no place in my life, and my place is not with them.
Wanna hang with me? Show up. And put out.
Take care of yourselves, Patriots. Stay calm. Stay sharp. Stay free.
#WiseUp #LibertyOrDeath #Ungovernable