Tools Of The Trade

While in Japan, one thing that struck me was how tradesmen (say, carpenters) carried only a few basic tools, and yet created breathtaking structures. In their little toolbox were carried only a hammer, a wood plane, a few chisels, and a saw (Japanese-style, with teeth on both sides). Day in and day out these quiet men worked with these tools, growing more proficient.

Their skills increased, not their tools.

Indeed, this was most obvious when I bought a small pair of illuminated wooden toro (lantern) that astound me to this day-- the finest cut hardwood lattices mate perfectly with the cross-pieces. There are no gaps, no flakey little bits of wood, no slathering of glue, and incredibly, no corruption of any kind. After nearly 15 years the wood has not warped or changed in any way, except, perhaps darkened as belies the hard miles we both have traveled.

The lesson I learned is contrasted with the world in which I live.

First, I would do better to stay with a "tool" (e.g., computer software, camera, some process) until I have mastered it. Second, I'd do well to remember that "ease of use" by its nature will remove a certain degree of control. In other words, I've lost the ability to grow towards perfection because an "easy" feature invalidates some honed skill I've learned.

And third, I should remember that not all things I can do with new features or new products is something I ought to be doing. I found this out when I started digitizing old vinyl record albums-- about 300 in the collection. After the first dozen, it occurred to me that the time tradeoff wasn't worth the family time I was consuming.

Thus the lesson of life: We're at our best when we work to perfect our thoughts, our attitudes, and learn to hold our tongues and tempers. We, too, have just a few tools in our tiny mental toolbox (e.g., love, language, actions, perseverance, fidelity), and so much the better for our souls-- and our relations-- if we look to perfecting ourselves through perfecting these "little" skills.

Cheers!