Nerves of Steel

Several weeks ago my attention was drawn to the many news clips of engineers climbing around on the Washington Monument looking for potential earthquake damage. My thoughts centered on the idea that they must have nerves of steel, titanium steel at that. It is one thing to be on a tall skyscraper separated safely from outside danger by thick glass or a sturdy fence. These four brave souls had nothing between themselves and danger other than a rope, safety harness, and physical strength and training, along with a focused determination to succeed.

Many will consider their exploits as being fool hardy or reckless. To take such personal risks today may seem unnecessary in our high tech world. I’m certain that these experienced engineers have heard the same kinds of statements for years. Some of their nerves of steel are no doubt reserved for dealing with the critical and uninformed words of the public.

It occurred to me that most of us will have to acquire nerves of steel to deal with our futures. It is unlikely that any of us will be called upon to dangle from a rope 500 feet in the air while performing some function. Our nerves of steel will have to be honed to cope with daily economic calamity coupled with energy shortage. There will be no protective barriers between ourselves and the danger of dwindling energy and economic resources. As time passes, we will find ourselves precariously dangling by a rope above a great unknown. This will require the same degree of nerves of steel that the engineers are using daily in their job.

So how do we go about developing the nerves of steel needed for the future? First of all we must realize that we don’t develop nerves of steel quickly. None of the engineers on the Washington Monument were in their first week on the job. They had trained for years, learning the skills of climbing. They had practiced with their equipment many times and learned from experience its limitations. To the entire world it looked as though they were out on the sides of the monument all alone. In reality, another behind the scenes team was at work on the other end of those ropes, assisting them in their function.

Our quest for nerves of steel will require much the same degree of planning, preparation and support that these courageous engineers possessed. We can’t procrastinate until the day the first “Out of Gas” signs appear in our gas stations, the food shelves are empty, or our debit cards don’t work in the ATM, to begin our planning and preparation. As with the engineers on the monument, much of that work occurs between the ears, well in advance of the challenge. Without such advance planning, we will have to work with nerves of glass or worse.

Secondly these engineers had practiced many times before on much smaller challenges to develop their skills and confidence. They did not crawl out of the windows onto the sides of the Washington Monument with all of their advance planning, see the ground for the first time and allow their fears to overpower their advance preparation. We must do the same. We must become familiar with the tools that we are likely to depend on in the future. We must determine if our water filters will indeed produce clean water. We need to find out if we have a green or a black thumb when it comes to growing food. We can’t assume that we will quickly acquire those skills when we need to use them. If you can’t hit a nail with a hammer today, you need to practice using a hammer now. Otherwise, our nerves will turn to jelly when confronted with our own version of the Washington Monument.

Finally, these engineers were not cubicle or office dwellers all the time. They had to keep working with their primary tool, their bodies, strengthening and conditioning themselves to be able to perform the tasks that lay in front of them. I will be the first to admit that I dwell in the chair too much, graze in the refrigerator all too frequently and that my physical stamina is far less than it should be. Simple walking can go a long way toward getting you started. I ride a bike, but not as much as I need to. Admitting my shortcomings does nothing for my getting into shape. I have to take conscious action in order to obtain useful results. What kind of simple action will you strive to begin with me today to get ready to meet the challenges ahead?

These engineers didn’t accomplish their tasks alone, and neither will we. We will need the help of others on the opposite end of our rope. They can’t be helpers on Facebook, on the other side of town, or out of state. They must be close at hand. Peak Shrink, and many others, have been constantly advising us on the criticality of community in the future that we all face. That is not just geographic community in terms of dwelling between city limit signs, unless yours is a small community. It is the community of your closest neighbors. In the urban setting, one or two blocks at most. In the rural setting it may be within a couple of miles around you. We will have to pool our resources to obtain the skills, transportation, protection, and daily sustenance that we all will need. Hanging a label of introvert on yourself will not assist you with meeting the life challenges ahead. You will need to step up and step out to begin building that necessary community around you. In our neighborhood, one neighbor was moved several years ago to invite people living around them into their home once a month for a pot luck dinner. Eight or nine families now regularly come together to eat and fellowship every month. We share our aches and pains, our skills and resources, our victories and our failures, and now also a sense of belonging. This simple gesture has collectively developed in us nerves of steel attitudes, for we are not facing the future challenges alone.

Your personal Washington Monument is dead ahead. It may not be 550 feet high. It may only be 50 feet high, but it could also be 1000 feet high.

What will you begin doing TODAY to develop your own nerves of steel, and to prepare you to conquer your own upcoming Washington Monuments?

Chuck

Peak Oil Blues