Hurdles

It's a symptom and it's a normal occurrence.  The belt on the mower deck was ready to give out.

The normal occurrence part is easy to explain.  Every year, especially in the Spring, we go through a series of problems with the various tools we use to work at the Genuine Faux Farm.  After a few months of storage during the coldest months, we start taking all of the hand tools, motorized equipment and implements out for use.

Sometimes we are able to give each tool a thorough once over and we can perform basic maintenance.  Usually, when we do that, we discover several things that need attention.  More often than I like to admit, we get pushed into using equipment before we can do the full inspection, so we uncover the things that need attention with a bit more drama.

This time around, the issue was actually the result of some chicken wire not being where it was supposed to be.  The mower deck found it for us (of course) and that probably resulted in the belt problem.  This sort of thing happens and you have to address it.

The issue?  I made it into a bigger problem in my head than it deserved to be.  It's a symptom of our state of mind.  When you're feeling overwhelmed, little things become big things.  Or maybe there are so many little things they become a big thing when they are considered as a group.

Suddenly, the whole FARM is a problem.  NOTHING works.  EVERYTHING is broken.  NONE of the crops are going to get planted.  We'll NEVER get caught up.

Of course, none of that is entirely true, but there was a grain of truth in each that we could build on if we were so inclined.

It didn't matter if it was entirely true.  Taking the deck off and replacing the belt FELT like a big deal.  And sometimes that's why there is a battle to make progress in the first place.  It's not entirely about reality.  It's about perception.

One of my favorite improvements over the years is this tool wall in the Truck Barn at our farm (thanks Dad!).  Seeders, shovels, wheel hoes, loppers and all kinds of things can be found here.  And, the tool wall works best if you follow through with putting the tools away once you are done with them.

We have found that it is difficult to put tools on the tool wall if you put a table and other hard to move stuff in FRONT of that wall.

This has been one of the symptoms that comes along with our move to more off-farm work.  You have less time, so you set a few things in bad places "temporarily."  Then, you reach over that stuff to get a few tools so you can do a little work in a spare moment.  After that, you realize you have to run to do something for your non-farm job and you can't easily get to the tool wall.

You all know what happens next.  

You set those tools down somewhere convenient with the words, "I'll put that away later."

The mismanaged tool wall and the mower deck are two symptoms of how we've been feeling this Spring.  It is really not that difficult a task to take some time and rearrange things so the tool wall is accessible again.  Changing the belt on the deck is something I've done before, so it's not the biggest mystery either.  Yet, we've let them grow into these giant hurdles in our minds that prevent us from getting much of anything done.

The good news?  We've continued to use the momentum our farm friends helped us find and the deck is repaired and the tool wall is, once again, accessible.  We still have a long list of things we want and/or need to do.  But, we are making some progress - as opposed to no progress.

We've managed to change our perception of how the farm is doing, which means we're doing much better - thank you very much.  And we expect there will now be some successes amidst the inevitable failures.  That's normal.  And we can live well with that.