Plain-sailing through life
THERE are lots of skills that get learnt as we wander through this wonderful thing called life. Walking and talking, for instance. Along with falling over, talking nonsense and trying to eat everything that falls within reach, they are pretty much the first basic skills we all have to master. After that, things start to pick up pace. Reading, writing, riding a bike, getting back on again after a fall. They are all up there in the mighty pantheon of life skills that once learnt will never leave us. Hence the old cliche that some things are like riding a bike, I suppose. Then there are other skills. Slightly more niche. Not your every day ability. The stuff of dreams. Strange dreams.
Got thinking about all this as I chugged along a waterway in Scotland the other day. Daydreaming. Regular readers will know all about my present love affair with narrowboats, canals and holidays on them. Just got back from a wonderful week aboard a lovely boat which we drove all the way from the Falkirk wheel to Edinburgh. And back again. I’m writing a travel piece about it all for our Weekend magazine, so do keep your eyes peeled for further details. But I digress.
Point is, as we slowly meandered our way between the Scottish summer rain showers and Scottish summer sunshine, I realised something. After having spent so many weeks driving these boats, it has now become second nature. Something I don’t even have to think about. Takes me back to the days of learning to drive a car. The instructor kept on going on about how, after a period of practice, driving a car becomes automatic. You don’t really have to think about it. You just do it. He was right. These days, I find at the end of a long journey, after driving for several hours, going back over the miles in my mind, it’s almost impossible to remember doing such simple things as changing gear, braking or even steering. It is all just mechanical. Something to be done without conscious thought. As if by magic. It’s a fab feeling when a new skill gets that ingrained. When you find yourself completely in the flow. Able to do something without having to waste time thinking about it. Just letting your instincts take over.
Which is where the narrowboat bit comes into the story. At some point last week, on a long day’s chug, it dawned on me that we had been moving along for ages. Doing all sorts of intricate manoeuvres. Wriggling round tight bends, avoiding other boats, tiptoeing past kids in canoes, sliding slowly past people on paddleboards. All the sorts of things that one does on the canals. But here’s the bit that got me excited. I hadn’t thought about doing any of it. All day long, if I wanted the boat to do something, to go somewhere, I had been able to make it so. All without engaging conscious brain. Which was a bit of a thrill.
Made me think of a few other esoteric skills I have learnt along the way so far. Skiing and snowboarding, for instance. Spent some years in my youth learning to do both, reasonably well, or at least, well enough to enjoy the thrill of whistling down snowy slopes. Can’t imagine those skills will be picked up again any time soon. They will only live on as fond memories of times gone by. A while back, I learnt how to ride a motorbike. Most exciting it was too. Taking a bunch of tests, getting out on the roads and over the last few years, honing my abilities. Making it possible to drive around on two wheels as if born to it. Still do it almost every day, it is even more delicious than haggis with chips and peas.
All of which got me wondering about what new skills I should try to pick in the future. Won’t be easy. Nothing to do with age, mind.
The main difficulty is that as far as I can make out, there aren’t a lot of things left to do on the old bucket list. They have all been tried, tested and ticked off. It’s quite a pleasant thought, though. Where do I want to go next for adventures? What new skills do I need to help me get there? Most exciting.
So dear reader, what is there left to learn in your life? What would you like to do that you haven’t tried already? Hmm. Interesting question. If you come up with any useful answers, do please get in touch. I’m always in search of new follies!
Hope you and yours are safe, well and happy.
Until next time, all the best