Dreams
By
Tim Pace
Posted: 2020-03-15T19:36:00Z
The President’s Turn
I am sixty years old. That very thought has bothered me a bit this week. But as I began to really think about it, it bothered me even more, so I quit. I have come to the realization that my dream of hiking the full length of the Appalachian Trail is probably not going to happen. I finally realized sometime ago; I’m not going to qualify as a navy pilot flying supersonic jets off of an aircraft carrier either.
If I look at what I can’t do, it can be a bit depressing. I’m sure that I am not the only one that has had that thought. But the one thing that has not faded is my imagination and my desire to at least try to improve in my woodturning skills. I want to keep my mind sharp and vibrant. I refuse to allow my age to cause me to not enjoy going to the shop to turn a beautiful piece of cherry. That’s the beauty of what we do. Let’s not forget that it’s the enjoyment of the craft that got us here in the first place. Nothing says that you have to shut down your mind once you reach a certain age. Don’t limit yourself and your enjoyment just because you can’t turn a masterpiece every time you go to the lathe. It's not that important. Just being physically able to go and enjoy being in the shop is still a great thing to experience.
Let me tell you what is important to me. The friends that I have because of our woodturning club. I enjoy seeing the younger and newer members take on a challenge and learn. I enjoy seeing the work of others and the dare that it brings to my own skillset. Watching the camaraderie amongst our members is priceless to me. Having the privilege of being associated with great team leaders has been exciting because we have accomplished what we set out to do last year and we have high hopes for this year.
I know that this post has been a bit on the philosophical side, but that’s ok. We all need to be encouraged every once in a while. The upside to not fulfilling my youthful dreams is that I won’t get lost and require a mountain rescue nor shall the Navy find bits and pieces of my airplane stuck to the fantail of the ship.
Until next month...