Good Timber

I came across this poem by Douglas Malloch in a YouTube video, which immediately made an impression on me.  At the time, I was going through a challenging period in my life.

There are many sayings about when life gets difficult, we get stronger, and I believe that it is true.  Sometimes we must brace ourselves for what lies ahead, face it, lean into it, and in that process, the time under tension gives us strength, a strength that lasts beyond the event that is taking place at that moment.  It’s more than having a growth mindset.  It’s also about knowing what you can and cannot control. 

Recently a coach at a fitness class I attend used the term” time under tension”, she was encouraging us to slow down and let our muscles feel the strain and weight of the exercises and not to use speed and momentum but to make our body hold itself in position for more extended periods.  That’s where the real growth is.

I believe that is the same for our minds.  If, in the face of adversity, we slow down, be calm, be present, be proactive and lean into the issue, we will make the best decisions and grow.   Life will always throw obstacles and pressure onto our path.  Instead of avoiding it, if we move towards it with the knowledge that there is growth, we will discover how remarkable humans are.

It seems that the 2020s will continue to dish out plenty of obstacles.  A rapidly changing economy, high inflation, wars, uncertainty of an upcoming election year, global tensions in many areas, and so on.  We have endured a lot in the last two years.  Most of us will acknowledge that we did get through “because we had to” it demonstrates that when the unavoidable is upon us, we can accept that it is coming, do what we believe is correct at that moment, move past it, and reflect on the personal, team/family growth that occurred as a result. Trees get stronger in the harshest environments, the pressure of wind, rain, snow and the fight for light all contribute to their strength as they grow.  They respond to the climate, season after season, shedding leaves and growing seeds and reaching into the depths of the earth for sources of energy to keep reaching out and up.  Everything they need is already at their feet.

GOOD TIMBER

by Douglas Malloch

The tree that never had to fight
For sun and sky and air and light,
But stood out in the open plain
And always got its share of rain,
Never became a forest king
But lived and died a scrubby thing.

The man who never had to toil
To gain and farm his patch of soil,
Who never had to win his share
Of sun and sky and light and air,
Never became a manly man
But lived and died as he began.

Good timber does not grow with ease:
The stronger wind, the stronger trees;
The further sky, the greater length;
The more the storm, the more the strength.
By sun and cold, by rain and snow,
In trees and men good timbers grow.

Where thickest lies the forest growth,
We find the patriarchs of both.
And they hold counsel with the stars
Whose broken branches show the scars
Of many winds and much of strife.
This is the common law of life.

Ian Featherstone is a cabinetmaker, machinist, business advisor, mentor and leadership coach, and the owner of Glass Half Full. He specialises in the construction industry, particularly the joinery & cabinetry sector. For more information or to find out how you can move your team forward, please visit www.glasshalffull.co.nz