Developing skills is a skill!

"Wisdom is knowing what to do next, skill is knowing how to do it and virtue is doing it." - David Starr Jordan

From the very day we are conceived, we begin growing. In the beginning, there are subtle changes that occur and then suddenly there are fingers and toes and other recognizable body parts. Oh! It's a baby in there! When we are born, we don't stop growing and developing; we grow taller, we learn to communicate and eat solid foods. But there is more than just growing and going along with the main stream of childhood development. There are things we call skills; talents each one of us learn or develop, grow into or grow to love. The challenge is realizing we have abilities and finding that special skill or skills inside of us.

Being a mother of two young boys, I witness daily growth, a lot of skill building and trying out new things for the first time. It is amazing what they learn, comprehend and actually hold onto in their own little skill bank. I admire that innocent talent so much.

I think, as adults, we sometimes lose that motivation for, or the understanding of, mastering a skill. We think we are too old, it's too dangerous, it's too complicated. Our life experiences of past skill building can stop us in our tracks. However, sometimes we surge forward after one ridiculous attempt after another just to say to others or even ourselves that we are a master at something. Even in the simplest of tasks, we can feel defeated and continue to try and improve upon the mistakes we have made in order to succeed just a little. We lose the grasp on the whole concept of how to actually become good at something. The other night we were reading a book before bedtime. My older son stopped me mid-story and said "I learned something in Kindergarten today. All you have to do is try and as long as you do your best, it's ok." Even now, I am not quite sure where that came from and why he said it right then. But a little piece of me thinks he was picking up on my own skill insecurities and thought he'd pass along a bit of this new found wisdom.

In my current professional situation, I am soul searching quite a bit; wondering if there are any real skills that I can offer to an organization. There are many jobs I would love to do, but am unfortunately an amateur at and therefore could not perform in a professional capacity. The skills I do have may not be able to offer me what I want at this point in my life. So I continue to research, soul search, try and do my best.

In my home life, there are also many jobs that I am still working on perfecting. For instance, I have yet to master the art of brushing my teeth while ironing. That is a skill set that definitely still needs some practice. Who ever invented the TV tray was a genius. However, they must have put that invention on the back burner for improvements, as I still have not yet mastered the skill of folding it without pinching my finger and somehow slamming it shut. I am thankful these are not important must-have career skills.

My children surprise me every day with their wonderment, their courage, ideas and their questions. All of the above are such positive strides towards perfecting their own skills. For them, anything can become a boat or a ship; the DVR, a cardboard box or our coffee table with a make shift bridge. My older son creates magnificent space ships out of the smallest Lego pieces. My younger son is so thoughtful. He comes out with questions like "If birds like breadcrumbs and chip crumbs, how come they don't like hot dogs?" and "If lightning McQueen is not a girl, why do they call him McQUEEN?" About two years ago, my older son started pushing our kisses in so they wouldn't fall off. My younger son has a memory like an elephant; he remembers discussions we had weeks ago, places we went, people we have seen and can recite it all back even if we do not wish to hear it all right then. They love playing sports like golf and soccer and using their imaginations with Legos, Star Wars figures and playdough. They are full of life and so much energy. And just when I think they are getting old enough for me to be able to teach them some real life lessons, it seems as though they are teaching me once again. I was having a difficult time trying to tie a balloon the other day and my son looked up at me with his big innocent eyes and said "You just have to practice, Mommy."