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Tales From the Edge of Competence
by Tammy Kennon
Liv Fun: Vol 6 – Issue 2
The ominous blue glow of the new GPS was the only brilliant thing in the cockpit. It was 8 p.m., and I stood shrouded in doubt and a blanket, trying to ward off a late October chill.
The grand launch of my new sailing life was a few hours away, and I had chosen this moment to learn how to use the technology that would guide me from the dock in North Carolina to southern latitudes, dreamy white sand beaches, and turquoise water. I know, it was embarrassingly late to learn how to plot a course, but somehow with all the other mission-critical things on the To-Do list, like installing the new GPS, learning how to use it just never made it to the top of the list.
I entered the waypoints according to the manual, and everything was humming along … until it wasn’t. The manual and the GPS were at odds. Or maybe it was the middlewoman. Something wasn’t right. Every time I finished the route and hit save, it didn’t. One time, the screen filled with capital As and foreign symbols and then froze.
This was my first inkling that I was nearing the outer edge of my competence. In just a few hours, I would break the competence barrier and sail well beyond it — at 5 knots.
With five decades of life experience under my belt, I knew myself to be a competent “land” person with a successful career and a thriving business. I lived in a house that I had designed. I drove a car with confidence and knew lots of useful things, like how to use a stove and unclog a toilet. What I didn’t know was that the seemingly small step from the dock to the boat was shockingly large. I emerged on the other side a complete amateur. All my old, reliable competencies were utterly useless.
My comfort zone and my competence were left in the dirt. Our comfort zone is simply that behavioral space where routine and pattern minimize fear, anxiety and risk. We invest much of our lives in crafting that comfort zone, creating a nesting space with a comfy bed, a just-right chair, and all the daily belongings that grease the skids of everyday living. We eat “comfort” foods, often sharing them with our group of much-loved friends. We nurture an area of expertise, gaining confidence in our abilities.
Liv Fun
by Leisure Care
Summer 2017
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Tethered
by Pam Mandel
He’s always ready to go before I am. I check multiple times for my phone, the house keys … do I have everything? He looks in the back door, disappointed to see my shoes are still on the stairs … what is taking me so long? Harley is my walking companion; we’ve been doing this for over a year now, almost every day.
Tales From the Edge of Competence
by Tammy Kennon
The ominous blue glow of the new GPS was the only brilliant thing in the cockpit. It was 8 p.m., and I stood shrouded in doubt and a blanket, trying to ward off a late October chill. The grand launch of my new sailing life was a few hours away, and I had chosen this moment to learn how to use the technology that would guide me from the dock in North Carolina to southern latitudes, dreamy white sand beaches, and turquoise water.
Breaking Down Borders
by Elana Zaiman
In March 2016, my friend Ellen introduced me to the work of the Saturday Sewing Sisters. This group of women from the Sarah Allen Sisterhood of the Women’s Ministry of the First African Methodist Episcopal Church in Seattle gather one Saturday each month to sew washable feminine hygiene kits for girls in Limbe, Cameroon, one of Seattle’s sister cities.