The Banner Pole Conundrum
It all began early one morning when I had to rescue the banner pole out of a narrow box that measured 4 foot high, 18 inches across and 6 foot wide. You get the picture. I couldn’t reach the bottom of this container by simply bending over and reaching inside. What I wanted lay tantalisingly at the bottom. I could see it. It lay there taunting me.
There was only one thing for it. I got up on a chair and gently lowered myself in, picked up the recalcitrant poles and then… well um…. You know where this is going right?
There I was, in a locked empty church, early in the morning and getting out was going to be a lot more problematic than getting in.
‘Sad’ words were muttered and my doctor would have been very displeased with my blood pressure.
In the end I pushed myself up and very precariously, so as not to endanger my life insurance policy, through a herculean effort managed to get out and emerge triumphant clutching the banner pole close to my breast.
I have made the same mistake many times in my life. To rush in and solve the problem or fix the broken doodad without first thinking through how all this might work. What catastrophes my brashness and overconfidence have initiated along the way. I say inspiring things to myself like …How hard could it be?… Well, let me tell you! Plenty hard. Painting something white while dressed in my priestly blacks probably ranks right up there. What could possibly go wrong?
So when you come across a problem… just stop. First think carefully; consult YouTube if you have to. Just don’t jump in boots and all. Just don’t.