Our Time vs. Our Work
Our Time vs. Our Work
If no one was around to see the work you create, would you still create it?
As I’m working on my first book, The Wiley Canning Company Cookbook, I can’t help but wonder who might see it. Who might read this book? How many people might read this book? A few? A few hundred? A few thousand? This curiosity isn’t necessarily vain. I’m writing a book that others might read, and from time to time, I can’t help but wonder if their reading will lead to a feeling, a yearning for a newfound relationship with their food, pantries, and tables. Regardless of its success, I take great comfort in the following truth: no matter the success of The Wiley Canning Company Cookbook, I want to continue to spend my time the same way I do right now. I want to write, create photographs, and develop canning, pickling, and preserving recipes using fruits and vegetables. I want to be at my computer. I want to be in my studio. I want to be in my kitchen. My work is the result of how I spend my time, and the way I spend my time is what nourishes me. It is vital to remember this. It is vital to know this. The Wiley Canning Company Cookbook is the result of spending my time writing, creating photographs, and developing canning, pickling, and preserving recipes using fruits and vegetables.
Before I gave birth to Sullivan, I spent much of my free time training for half-marathons, marathons, and my first Ironman 70.3. Oftentimes, someone would ask, “Why do you like half-marathons?” “Why are you training for a marathon?” “What’s driving you to complete an Ironman?” My answer was always the same. As simple as it sounds, I would respond, “I like half-marathons because I love to run.” I loved to spend my time running. The result of spending my time running was the completion of half-marathons, marathons, and an Ironman.
If no one was around to read The Wiley Canning Company Cookbook, would I still complete it? My answer is a resounding, “Yes.” I would still complete it because I love to spend my time writing, creating photographs, and developing canning, pickling, and preserving recipes using fruits and vegetables. If no one was around to see me cross the finish line of a race, would I still complete it? My answer, again, is a resounding, “Yes.” I would still complete it because I love to spend my time running.
Of course, community is a huge part of what makes our work so enjoyable and rewarding. As human beings, we need community. We need accountability. We, I believe, need validation. When I envision you reading The Wiley Canning Company Cookbook, I feel butterflies. When I see my family cheering for me during a race, I feel immediately boosted. But, community cannot be what primarily drives us. We must first be driven by how we wish to spend our time. We must first feel confident in where we invest our unique minds, tender hearts, and precious energy. Then, we have the great fortune of welcoming community into this time and work.
Our work is the result of how we spend our time. If we envision a specific result—specific work—we must first focus on how we spend our time. Then, we may cherish and care for the community that begins to grow and surround us.