ONE WALL

Some time ago, I asked you to identify individuals who have influence in your life – positive influence. I am circling back to these influencers because I read this quote and thought of mine.

“A wall standing alone is useless but put three or four walls together and they’ll support a roof and keep the grain dry and safe.” Rumi

Some of my influencers are my walls. Others are the ladders used to build my structure. Some are the nails that hold me together etc. They all make me better.

I like doing projects alone because it is faster and often easier. While alone may be the more efficient way, it is often not the most fun route to take. Some of the most enjoyable meals I have ever eaten were prepared, among others.

A close friend and influencer gifted me a with a certificate for an online Italian cooking class. She wanted to encourage my interest in pasta making. For months I didn’t activate the gift card. When I did, I took one look at the syllabus and decided that I could do it alone but thought that it should be a shared experience. The gift giver and another friend were visiting a few months later and the class was opened again. We had a lot of fun but finally abandoned the making of pasta and went to the pantry for the store-bought stuff after discovering one step required a substantial waiting period. We wanted dinner before midnight.

A few weeks later after four hours of fun, frivolity and the merriment of pasta making, four adult men, one of whom had pasta making experience, three adult women and four children under the age of eight finally sat down at a communal table and ate homemade pasta with gusto.

This is a simplistic example of the quote. I failed with my first attempt. The task was daunting. With a proper expectation about time and proper preparation, I could have made the pasta in less time than it took with a gaggle of friends and family. It was chaotic and filled with fun, frivolity, and foolishness. We constructed a house that evening that keeps the memory of the smell of homemade pasta sauce, the sounds of pasta being extruded from the pasta maker, the sight of pasta drying, the voices of each of us melding into a potpourri of conversation and a taste sensation safe and dry.

Who are the people who come along beside you to help influence your decisions for the better, more fun you?

Ecclesiastes 4:9-11

PONDER THIS THOUGHT---Cultivate a village of influencers.