A Philosopher’s Adventure #17
Episode #17 - Fear Not the Amount of Work
Sometimes You Need A Bigger Tool
The main theme I took from this episode is, “fear not that which needs a bigger tool.” We saw Martijn digging a trench the first time he upgraded the water pipes, and it was a lot of work for the 20-30 feet he covered. We see the drawings and the plan for the plumbing is to go across the property. Unless he wants to spend tens of days digging the trenches by hand, he will have to bring in a power tool. In this case, a ridable digger has been rented. He talks about the dangers involved with the property having the slopes it does. He simply states that he will have to practice. The lesson is to get comfortable with things that might be uncomfortable because they are the only way forward. What are the margins of error you are working with? In this case, Martijn has the entire field to make mistakes. His biggest risk is time. However, one of the lessons we’ve touched on already in this series is the idea of living “more inefficiently”. He also risks the cost of having to keep the digger longer if the job isn’t done in time, but the gains far outweigh the risks if that’s what we’re measuring. Before leaving this point behind, let’s broaden the idea of using a bigger tool to get the job done. A bigger tool doesn’t have to be as literal as a digger over a shovel. That tool can be family or friends. There are lots of situations in modern life where we are isolated or forced to be self-reliant. If you could call in reinforcements, maybe that is the camaraderie that will get you moving and get your projects completed. How much nicer would it be to have a collection of people who shared help with projects three or four times a year? That feels like a huge societal ask, but the idea feels good.
The Gift of Life
If the follower count wasn’t proof enough, Martijn is building a gravity well of hope. The comments section of his videos is one place where that hope manifests itself. These essays are similar manifestations. In the episode a girl drops off a small box that is full of seeds and soap. Such a small gesture, but one that shows what can happen when a collection of people gets behind the same hopeful message.
“A different view of the same place”
Martijn talks about moving the inner cabin outside and he looks excited, in his subdued way, about the prospect of seeing the property from another angle. Martijn has an unfair advantage being that he lives in the mountains, surrounded by nature. However, we can still ask ourselves how we can look at the surroundings of our lives from a different angle. If circumstances are more static, as I suspect it is for a lot of us, how can we alter the look of our surroundings? I’m thinking about wall art, moving furniture around to give what we are used to seeing a slightly different look. I like the idea that the brain is forced to look at the same space repeatedly and get creative about different ways to see the same space. Actively live within your life and see how your space can change.
I feel like we’ve danced around this idea several times to this point, but therein lies another idea. It can take people a long time to internalize the lessons that are there to be taken from a story like this. We are here, talking about and watching the same lessons week after week, and the more we see them and all the benefits they bring, the more internalized they will become.
Lunch With Friends
It is one of those moments in the story that makes me feel warm inside. Martijn stops by Johannes’ house to have lunch. Life takes friends in all sorts of directions, but it’s nice to see people making time to sit and have a meal together. I have that with a couple of friends who work close to my office. We get together once a month, and I am always looking forward to those meals. I won’t go so far as to say, “Just go out with your friends.” With the modern loneliness epidemic we face as a species, that would be short-sighted of me. However, think about the connection we see here and consider where you can find that in your own life. Lunch can be eaten virtually, and conversations can be had over the internet. If the intent of connection is part of the meal, we can also have moments like we see here. Friends having lunch, on the side of the mountain, building their own little community.
Outro
I leave you with the end of a big project and a walk in the forest. The last of the sod has been replaced, and Martijn celebrates with a well-earned adult beverage. The story this image tells is powerful and inspiring. Some might file this moment under “work hard play hard”, but I think this is more about pacing yourself for the speed and duration of life. Time wants us to move faster but we need to allow ourselves the opportunity to sit in our moments of triumph.
The episode ends with another beautiful image of the foggy forest as Martijn takes a walk through the trees. When we aren’t being shown the power of persistence and the benefits or rest, we are shown the beauty, and mystery of the mountain.
Thanks for reading, see you next time.
CHR;)
