Where there’s a will, there’s a way. It’s a cliche we’re all familiar with, and probably all strongly believe in, but in many aspects of life we* don’t apply it.
There are lots of things I admire about my wife. She’s polar opposite to me so I learn a lot from her. One of those things is her tenacity, the way she doesn’t quit when she wants something and knows it can be done.
Where most people will pack it in, she pushes on. I can’t count how many times I would have given up on something if not for her, and in the end, she’s almost always right. Here’s an example. We just picked up our Bike Friday bicycles and she wanted to replace the stock bell with a funky horn. The bike mechanic disappeared to the back room where they were setting up our bikes and then returned five minutes later.
“I have some bad news for you. The horn doesn’t fit,” he told Yvonne.
- She’s named her bike Ben. Ben Honka.
Wrong answer. As you’ve probably gathered from above, she didn’t let it rest and sure enough, we walked out of there with Yvonne’s choice of horn on the bike. She was right, it did fit.
This is a relatively minor example, but I think it illustrates really well one of the things that separates her from me, and from many people. I would have shrugged my shoulders, said “oh, that’s too bad” and left it at that. I maybe would have even said “thanks anyway for trying.”
I’ll never live down the time my friend Chad and I were moving a couch into the flat that Yvonne and I just moved into in Vancouver. We struggled to get it up the stairs and through the door, only to get stopped by the narrow tight turn into the living room.
After much twisting, turning, and cursing, we gave up and started contemplating hauling it three floors up on a rope and over the balcony. That or chopping it up and gluing it back together.
Over came Yvonne who was adamant it would get through. We laughed and told her there was no way. Five minutes later we were all sitting on the couch in the living room, Yvonne gloating.
I feel like we’ve lost something. And I blame society. There’s a lot of laziness out there (me included) and we throw in the towel too easily. And so we become too understanding when someone else tells us something can’t be done. This is especially true when we’re dealing with professionals. We think “well, they’re the professional, they know what they’re talking about.” But in many cases it boils down to laziness, pure and simple. They couldn’t be bothered, tell us it’s impossible, and we buy it.
So they get away with it. Until Yvonne comes along.
* I use the term we although it might be just me. But from what I’ve seen around, I really don’t think so.
{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
Speak the truth to power, Yvonne.
It sucks that you can’t “trust” people who are supposed to be professionals. As in everything in life, it just depends on the person. You might get the bike shop genius who knows how to fit 10 horns, bells, and whistles on your handlebars, or you might get the slacker who doesn’t want to put in an extra five minutes’ work and chooses to use his/her position of “power” to kill your idea.
From my experience, when it comes to bikes, anything truly is possible.
Oh man! Wait til you get to Cuba! Yvonne will be in “It can be done!” heaven. As the Cubans say, “Todo se resuelve”– Everything has a solution; everything is solvable.
And Lord knows, you’ll need that resolve.
@Hal I know right? As your Photo Essay proves! http://matadorlife.com/photo-essay-20-of-the-freakiest-bikes-on-the-road/
@Julie This is good.
As if to hammer home the point, I had another experience today. We had a box to send to Canada, a big box, 17.5 kg. We made sure it was within the allowable dimensions, although the girth was skirting the edge. I took it to the post office and he wouldn’t take it. Even though it was within AusPost limits (as stated on their website) he didn’t have large enough bags to accommodate it.
He said I would have to take it to a real Post Shop (he was only an agent)…but he told me that they all went on strike as of midnight last night. Dang.
So I thought, what would Yvonne do? So I drove over to the Post Shop, only to find it open, business as usual. Do people just make shit up or what?
So anyway, after standing in line the girl at the counter measured it. The girth was TWO centimeters over the limit! I threw on the charm and stalled her. A senior clerk walked by and gave the thumbs up to take it.
See? Always a way.
This post reminded me of my mom and the time she somehow moved an over-sized couch upstairs after everyone else said it couldn’t be done…Quote: “And so we become too understanding when someone else tells us something can’t be done.” I agree, I’ve noticed this a lot from others and from myself too. If people don’t care they get lazy and will tell you whatever they want, and we’re especially inclined to believe it if they’ve got a little badge that says “Professional” or even just “possibly more experienced than you.” Thank God there are people like your wife and my mom to remind us that it can be done