It’s time to get the lead out and create your own future
By Nick Jacobs
Confession time: I’ve become hooked on TikTok. I know it’s Chinese, but there are so many good film clips and interesting videos that it keeps me glued to it for at least 45 minutes a day. I figure, at my age, there’s not much left for them to steal.
Identity theft? Been there and done that numerous times. I can’t remember how many credit cards I’ve had to replace. My DNA is on file and probably is being used somewhere. My car is in some database that knows every oil change like it should be on TMZ. My face is plastered on social media, and in traffic camera computer banks everywhere. Plus, Apple knows my location 24/7. Oh, and Facebook can predict what ads to post before I even know what I’m buying.
Seriously, what’s left for these digital scavengers? At least, unlike some folks who take every word they hear from their personal TV or social media echo chambers as truth, I do still have the ability to think for myself and sort through most of the garbage. At least I do for now.
Recently, I came across a video of a man with no description of his identity, his area of expertise, or why he was posting. He wore a suit with a tie that was not fully tightened, and he was holding a pencil. So, I can’t even credit him for this. The title of his philosophical video essay was “Four things you need to know before you go out there.” He chose to discuss those four things via the comparison to a pencil.
His first statement referred to the fact that, like a pencil, throughout our lives, we need to experience something like the process of re-sharpening. He went on to explain that if the pencil had feelings, that sharpening process could be painful and challenging. But, if we plan to keep moving forward in our lives, this effort is a necessary part of our journey.
Next, he held up the eraser and explained that, like the pencil, we can learn from our mistakes and, in essence, erase them, or at least grow from them. In this case, those mistakes become lessons that can help us, so we don’t make them the next time around.
He referred to the fact that, also like the pencil, everywhere we go and everywhere we’ve been, we leave our mark. More importantly, however, he stressed that we are writing our own story, and we can turn our stumbling blocks into stepping stones.
Finally, in this pencil analogy, he suggested that we all remember the most important part, and that is what is inside us is what counts.
In a lighter moment even though the inside of a pencil is graphite, I couldn’t help but ponder the phrase, “Get the lead out.” This call to action is also something that could help some of our social media device-addicted youth.
Our presenter didn’t emphasize that expression, but it seems like a pertinent idiomatic description that signifies your need to put down your devices and get to work, not unlike the jockeys who sometimes carried lead weights and then took the lead out to win the race, or Rocco Bonetti, the Italian swordmaster who used to have his kids practice with lead in their shoes.
It’s time to get the lead out. It’s time to make your mark, learn from your mistakes, and remember to resharpen as needed. Life is a journey, but it’s your journey, and you have the opportunity to create your future, to design where you want to go, and then go for it.
When I retired from running hospitals, I found a notebook where I had written my goals 20 years earlier. Interestingly, I realized I’d accomplished them all. You can, too.
Dream, plan, and go for it.
Nick Jacobs is a Windber resident.