At the end of 2013, I did a retrospective post looking back on the year. This year, although lots of folks were doing such posts, I didn’t find the urge within me. A couple of days into the year, the urge still hasn’t hit me; however, I did want to share what I’ve learned about myself in 2014. There were two major things, which has led me to respect two classes of people a lot more:
- I’m Not A Salesman. This year, I took on the job of being President of our Men’s Organization at my synagogue, the Men of Temple Ahavat Shalom. I’ve created a new website, incorporated our own online event ticketing, and gotten a weekly newsletter going. But when it came time to get out there and sell stuff, such as ads or sponsorships for the Golf Tournament, I froze. I’ve come to realize that there are people who are blessed with the ability and personality to sell things easily; for me, that comes with great difficulty. I have the same passion about the product, but not the gumption to go out to strangers and sell sell sell. As a result, my hat is off to those with the ability. I need you to provide things I cannot do myself — this is why running an organization is a team, not a solo job.
- I’m Not An Actor. As you know, I go to a lot of theatre. You might think I’m a frustrated actor, but I’m not. In 2014, I came to the realization that I’m not the type that can inhabit a character. This is why you won’t see me pretending to be a character at the RenFaire, or at Dickens Faire, or up on the stage. Pretending to be who I am not is something that is very very difficult to me (and this connects to the first lesson, for I can’t even pretend to be a salesman). This is why I’ve begun referring to myself as a professional audience. I’m perfectly happy being an audience member, observing and commenting on the experience.
Our society constantly emphasizes learning who you are, and that we should be all we can be. But it is equally important to learn what we are not. Images are not just defined by the positive spaces, but by the negative spaces as well.
