In every moment is a Whisper. Welcome to one man’s quest to listen

Life likes to use the little things in the day to remind me of the big things I am missing.  In this case, there was no catastrophe.  Yes, I was on a ladder in the shop by myself.  Yes, I knew better.  Yes, I was foolish.  The reminder came with a simple tremor.  I was finishing the top of the wall, touching up here and there.  As I...

I love experiential training. It is hands-on, tangible, and filled with purpose. There is a beginning and a goal. Every instruction and experience passed on can be used. My reflection usually stops here, and I forget there is a practical part to training. It begins when the teacher is no longer in the room, and I put my education into practice...

The tyres were years overdue for replacement. Mid-2022 inspection notes suggested that action be taken. In hindsight, I assume the risk was noted and flagged for review at a future date. When unexpected events unfolded, the note and planned action were lost. I knew it was time to act with freezing weather on the horizon. I was confident everything would be...

The echo of laughter and tears, excitement and despair, is still replaying as I close my eyes this morning.  I see children living in the moment, building, competing, collaborating, and doing it all over again and again.  My initial reaction centred on my need to preserve the moment, if only for two.  They had a different approach!  It was full-on in the present, without a...

In the cold light of a new day, everything seems vulnerable.  I am not used to the cold.  Dealing with it is consuming far more energy than I remember.  It feels like I am in a battle, and the odds are stacked against me.  In my struggle to get things together, a fleeting image from a few weeks ago keeps returning.  The small sign was a...

I love organisation.  I aspire to be organised.  Candidly, while I can describe both, I am not particularly gifted at either.  I like to tell myself it is because I am always thinking about solving the puzzle and hand, and as soon as I do this, I am on to the next.  My rationalisation rarely convinces anyone, including myself.  The shop move, with a fourteen-year...

Fifteen years ago, maybe sixteen years ago, my father and I unpacked this table saw and began to assemble it in California. At the time, we could not imagine the future and how everything would play out. We enjoyed each other’s company as we worked and collaborated on my new shop. More than a decade later, the location has changed, the...

The fact that the weather was going to change was no secret.  Everyone was talking about it.  Any media that one might rely on was highlighting what was coming.  I could not think of any excuses for not knowing it was coming.  Knowing and understanding are never the same.  Additionally, I often delay taking the bridge from knowing to action, especially when I am not fond...