And sometimes the wall hits you.
by Andy Scheer
It just happened. I’m a few weeks from the end of a tedious project, editing multiple short pieces. No sooner do I solve one part, than a new challenge arises. It’s been a grind.
Mid afternoon I ground to a halt. The paragraph refused to make sense.
Realizing I’d reached my limits, I saved the file and left the table.
I took a short walk. Visited the restroom.
Filled my coffee mug and ate a chocolate bar.
I took a short walk. Visited the restroom. Filled my coffee mug and ate a chocolate bar. Said a short prayer.
Only then did I return to the paragraph that had stumped me.
It opted to surrender. The rest of the piece followed its example, as did the others I edited the rest of the afternoon.
But tomorrow may be a different story. So this evening I gave myself a break. I watched a quirky TV show, plunged deep into a novel I was reading, and turned up the volume for some choice music.
Tomorrow for breakfast I’ll pour a big bowl of Wheat Chex and drink some prime Colombian coffee. I’ll wear one of my favorite shirts and pack a pastrami sandwich for lunch.
The project may still do its best to stop me. It may even succeed.
But sometimes realizing my limitations is what I need most.
