Whenever I read the paper, the first part I turn to is the comics. I like to lighten up my life a little. There is too much doom and gloom on the front pages.
Most of the time I find comics that make me chuckle, some that make me laugh out loud and occasionally some give me pause to think, such as one I read recently. The grandfather was sharpening his pencil with a knife and his grandson was watching.
The grandfather said to him: “We are all kind of like a pencil. The most important part of us is on the inside. Sometimes we spend too much time erasing and not enough time writing, or sometimes we do too much writing and forget to sharpen the pencil. And sometimes we spend too much time sharpening and we end up as a useless stub.”
That’s something to think about isn’t it?
Do we beat ourselves up over our mistakes, trying to erase the past? Do we play the “if only” game? I remember my mother used to say, “If ifs and ands were pots and pans, the beggars would ride on horseback.” The full Scottish proverb is: "If wishes were horses, beggars would ride. If turnips were swords, I'd wear one by my side. If ifs and ands were pots and pans, there'd be no need for tinkers' hands."
What is done is done and no amount of thinking or worrying can undo it. Try as you might you can’t erase it, so you may as well begin to use the other end of the pencil and begin writing.
You need to write/right your life. Begin by writing down your goals and your dreams and move towards them one line at a time, but don’t get so busy writing that you forget about everything else and become dull.
Remember that your body needs rest. Don’t get caught up in the whirlwind of life or son you will be operating at less than your best, like the unsharpened pencil. Take the time to sleep, to rest…to sharpen up.
We can also sharpen up by reading and studying, but again, we can spend so much time learning that we forget about actually taking part in life and we find that life has passed us by and all the things we could have done we can no longer do. We have become a stub, no longer effective.
The grandchild then asks a very powerful question: Can I be the knife?
Wow! How perceptive of him. He is asking the question, can I be the one that helps to shape the lives of others, that helps to keep them sharp, but doesn’t let them do it too quickly, that let’s them move at just the right pace, sharpening/helping them when they need it but letting them learn and grow as they need to?
A person in this role has the opportunity to shape lives. Who are these people? Think about the roles of parent, teacher, leader. How do these people shape the lives of others. How do you sharpen the lives of those around you? Do you keep them sharp, or allow them to get dull. Do you try to sharpen them too much? Are your words and manner abrasive? Or are you gently shaping them into a point, allowing them to write their lives at a steady pace.
I did some research on the Pencil Story and found that it is a parable – author unknown and thought I would share it here with you.
The Pencil Maker took the pencil aside, just before putting him back into the box. “There are 5 things you need to know,” he told the pencil, “Before I send you out into the world. Always remember them and never forget, and you will become the best pencil you can be.”
“One: You will be able to do many great things, but only if you allow yourself to be held in Someone’s hand.”
“Two: You will experience a painful sharpening from time to time, but you’ll need it to become a better pencil.”
“Three: You will be able to correct any mistakes you might make.”
“Four: The most important part of you will always be what’s inside.”
“And Five: On every surface you are used on, you must leave your mark. No matter what the condition, you must continue to write.”
The pencil understood and promised to remember, and went into the box with purpose in its heart.
Now replacing the place of the pencil with you. Always remember them and never forget, and you will become the best person you can be.
One: You will be able to do many great things, but only if you allow yourself to be held in God’s hand. And allow other human beings to access you for the many gifts you possess.
Two: You will experience a painful sharpening from time to time, by going through various problems, but you’ll need it to become a stronger person.
Three: You will be able to correct any mistakes you might make.
Four: The most important part of you will always be what’s on the inside.
And five: On every surface you walk through, you must leave your mark. No matter what the situation, you must continue to do your duties.
By understanding and remembering, let us proceed with our life on this earth having a meaningful purpose in our heart.
[Author Unknown
Further research led to this version:
The Pencil Maker took the pencil aside, just before putting him into the box. “There are 5 things you need to know,” he told the pencil, “Before I send you out into the world. Always remember them and never forget, and you will become the best pencil you can be. “
#1 — You will be able to do many great things, but only if you allow yourself to be held in Someone’s hand. “ #2 — You will experience a painful sharpening from time to time, but you’ll need it to become a better pencil. “ #3 — You will be able to correct any mistakes you might make. “ #4 — The most important part of you will always be what’s inside. ` ` #5 — On every surface you are used on, you must leave your mark. No matter what the condition you must continue to write. “ The pencil understood and promised to remember, and went into the box with purpose in his heart. “
But now the pencil lay on the dark wood table, feeling insignificant and rather sad. Beside him on the desk was a colorful tin can, filled with every kind of beautiful pen to be had. There were silver fountain pens and a neon felt tip marker. There was also a classy ballpoint whom everyone called Parker. “ “What a loser,” they said of the pencil, as they observed his wooden frame. “Don’t bother with him, he’s a nobody,” said Parker, “He doesn’t even have a name.” “
Now the world was at war and their owner was a Soldier who was tasked to bring peace to the land.
“What we need is a map,” the Soldier had said, at the desk across from his Officer the other night. “If someone can fly me over the city unseen, I can draw a map from the sky. The map will tell you where to go and how to win, and soon we’ll put an end to this fight.” “
The Officer had agreed and now the Soldier would fly, but first he discussed with his wife. “I’ll need something to draw with, something dependable . . . something that won’t fail me mid-flight.” “ The Soldier looked at his dark wood desk, and observed all the pens in the can. He studied each one, their bodies all shimmering, and he weighed them all in his hand. “This one won’t work,” he said of a pen, “the ink might blot on the map. This one needs to be refilled every few hours, and this one will dry out without a cap.” “ He looked at each one and always found something wrong, or anticipated problems if he used it in the sky. “I need something that would work whatever the conditions, and I need it soon my dear wife.” “Then take this pencil.” his wife finally said, handing him the frail and battered yellow thing. “It will write no matter what, it will write on a plane — it’s the best writing tool you can bring.”
“ The Soldier smiled, kept the pencil in his pocket, and took it with him on the plane. He finished the map and the map helped bring them peace … and the pencil has never been the same. “ The pencil was now nothing more than a stub; what was left of his lead was now broken. His eraser was gone, his wood frame had split, and some time ago his metal ring had been stolen. “
Now he stood before the Pencil Maker, and waited for him to say those five words. “”Well done, my faithful pencil,” the Pencil Maker said, “You have written what you were meant to write in the world.”
These thoughts and many more were raised as I pondered that particular comic, so you can see why I like to begin with the comic section of the paper.
A bit of trivia: William Munroe manufactured the first American lead pencils in 1812. N.J.Conte made the first pencil and it was made in 1795.
The humble pencil is, globally, one of the most common tools used to write on paper, and there are a wide range of different types of pencils, but who invented the most widely-seen type of pencil (graphite with wood casing) seen today, and in doing so creating a stereotypical image for a product that is used at home, work, and school?
Although there were early attempts at making a pencils from ancient Egyptians and Romans, and also in the 1500’s, where English farmers used plain graphite to mark sheep. Both were reasonable methods for their purpose, the material on its own would leave marks on the user’s skin and were prone to breaking easily.
In 1795, a French officer belonging to the army of Napoleon invented and patented the first quality pencil on earth. Nicholas Jacques Conte (aka NJ Conte) discovered that ground graphite, when mixed with the right kinds of clay, produced the best lead for pencils. A great myth is that pencils are made of lead, but the thin black material in pencils is actually a mix of graphite, carbon, and clay. NJ Conte, managed to turn this graphite into powder, mixing it with moist doughs of clay and then pressing the materials into thin sticks, which were then ‘cooked’ to make the ‘pencil lead’. The modern wooden casing seen in most original pencils today would soon follow, providing a no-mess and more shatter-resistant protection for the product. The Faber family would soon take on this product into mass production, and the rest is history.
To date, there are 350 different types of pencils, used for a variety of purposes, and fitting different budgets. With a variety of shades and new and creative methods being sold for novelty (e.g. giant, twisty, ect.), it is an ever-expanding product, and one that is used in all walks of life, as it is very difficult to live a lifetime without using one.
Hope you enjoyed this
Fran Watson
http://www.banabu.ca/
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