Thoughts of a Mrs. Modern-Day Mountain Woman Chapter 29

Chapter 29: Make it run like clockwork.

“It takes a licking and keeps on ticking” - slogan for Timex watches

My family, as I probably have mentioned before, loves to watch Antiques Roadshow. We enjoy trying to guess the estimate before the antique specialist and we like seeing all the beautiful, and sometimes odd, items people have in their homes. One item that we like to “watch” are watches, both of the wrist and pocket variety. Well made watches never seem to depreciate. Even if they’re slightly damaged from wear and tear, they are almost always worth more now than they were when originally purchased. I have a beautiful watch that I received in our first year of marriage. I am afraid to wear it and damage it, so I only wear it on fancy occasions or for church. I’m much more of a Timex type watch wearer, like our past president George W. Bush. I remember thinking if it was good enough for him, it was good enough for me. With a Timex, I am not afraid when I inevitably bump it into the wall, getting scratches and paint all over it. I wear it to wash dishes or swim, garden, or while doing just about anything. I even wear it to bed at night. My watch, once I’m done wearing it, will have no monetary value. It will have served its purpose, lived its life well, and be done. A high-quality watch, however, when the wearer is through with it, will still be running and still be worth more than it was originally.

I’m not saying that a high-quality watch is better than a $50 watch, or vice versa. I believe they both have their functions and uses. While I personally will not wear my fancy watch anywhere where I may hurt it, there are many people who will wear it because what is the point of having something if you only use it a few times a year. They have a valid point. The joy of owning something is using it and enjoying it, not allowing it to sit in the closet for years until you finally are selected to be on Antiques Roadshow. The joy of possessing knowledge and talent is to use it, not sit on it and wait until you can exhibit it. What is the point of training hard and learning as much as you can, if you are not willing to go out and use those skills?

When I first started working at a summer camp that had high challenge course elements, I was terrified! My dad had never let us climb our trees in our yard very high. We maybe were allowed, at the most, to climb 8 feet off the ground. So, when as a college graduate, I realized I was expected to climb and work at 40 feet off the ground, I was petrified! It took a great deal of time and patience from my co-workers and directors to get me to the point of feeling confident in my abilities. I still never loved having to run the top of the challenge course, but I could do it when called upon. One thing my fear did for me was to allow me to empathize with others who were scared out of their wits. I didn’t just sit on my fear and allow it to grow, I took it out of the box and practiced using my fear of heights until I was able to be useful.

When we trained our staff in the past, we would do several “practice” days or introduction days to the program. This allowed everyone to see every piece of the program. After everyone had a chance to practice the activity, we would discuss who was best fitted for which activity and would thoroughly train those individuals. Even though some were chosen to be the specialists in the activity, everyone was given a chance to learn a bit about it so that they could also be useful helpers when the time came. Not everyone was going to be great at instructing archery, but everyone would have the knowledge useful to follow the rules and help protect and guide the campers and staff.

A Very Intricate Creation.

Every individual has a certain skill set that is specified to them. You wouldn’t ask a person who is only comfortable cooking in the kitchen to lead a caving trip. You can, however, offer them the experience necessary to at least understand and respect each aspect of programming. Just as it is a great idea for everyone to understand the workings of the kitchen and dish room in the camp setting, it is also a great idea for the cook staff to understand what is happening outside of their station.

Sometimes you need to wear your all-purpose, get-it-dirty watch, and sometimes you need to wear your beautiful, will always be worth something watch. The important part is to know when and where to wear each watch to make the best use of it. Having knowledge about each program and working to develop your skill is useless if you don’t get out and teach. Working hard to perfect the best camp kitchen routine does nothing if you don’t share your wealth of knowledge with others and help to pass on your skill. Learn about every aspect of your business. Watch how the maintenance staff organize their projects, see each program taught, understand the interworking parts of the kitchen, observe how the gears of the office are turning. Respect that every cog is working together to make your organization a well-run clock. Utilize the skills and make sure you take the opportunity to wear and use the watch you’ve worked so hard to build.