Daunting is a relatively weak word for what it feels like.

Let’s recognize that [...]]]> I’ve observed a number of conversations recently where people are coming up against what appears to be a brick wall of tasks.  There’s so much work to be done, an infinite number of problems to be fixed, a huge number of people to convince….

Daunting is a relatively weak word for what it feels like.

Let’s recognize that this is just a part of the human condition.  Nobody is meant to have it easy, even for those who appear to have it all together.  Where do we come up with the energy to fight the important battle?

One key trick I have is to celebrate positive progress, no matter how small.  That will support my ability to maintain the optimism that anything is possible, only given enough time and focus.  I have more resources than I recognize, there are others who have a similar passion to mine, and I’m making little teeny bits of progress every week, every month, every year.

Am I fooling myself?  Yeah, in a way.  Sometimes I don’t make any progress, even have to take steps back.  But that’s life, and that’s other people’s actions.  Despite that, it’s important for me to continue to maintain my mindset of possibility and optimism.  So instead of moving into despair, my challenge is to learn as much as possible from the challenges and then to move on.

If you’ve been following my career blog, you know that I lost my job in Spring 2009.  It was a deep emotional blow, of course.  But my faith and attitude was core to my ability to work through the disruption.  I’m not totally through the challenges, as my company isn’t yet showing a profit, but I’m working hard to celebrate the small steps and keep optimistic.

It’s a daily challenge, but worth the effort.

First, I found out that the job opening which seemed possible at some point has now slipped from my grasp.  So the probability is now vanishingly small that I’m going to get an HP job in the next three weeks.

On the plus side, [...]]]> It’s a day of great movement in my life, many things are in flux.

First, I found out that the job opening which seemed possible at some point has now slipped from my grasp.  So the probability is now vanishingly small that I’m going to get an HP job in the next three weeks.

On the plus side, my son returned safely from a wonderful trip to California, where he engaged with leading minds in the homebrew community and learned a great deal.  Can’t wait to hear the scoop from him.

On the downside, I’ve heard lots of bad news – relatives of friends dying, more people losing their jobs, and on and on.  There’s a great number of people we need to pray for this week.

But the big positive:  We just began the 19th Sacred Music Colloquium tonight.  We started right off with a bang, singing Veni Creator Spiritus.  There’s absolutely nothing like hundreds of people coming together to sing a beautiful hymn like that – and doing it successfully!  My heart leaps with joy.

We practiced some other music for tomorrow’s Mass, with varying levels of confidence.  Ah well, more work to do.

I signed up for the polyphony choir being led by Jenny Donelson, and we had the first practice for that group tonight.  The hymn O Salutaris Hostia (Pierre de La Rue) actually came out in 4-part harmony pretty well after a few run-throughs.  An attempt at solfege was a bit rockier, that exercises parts of my brain that aren’t turned on very well.

But it’s only the first day.  We wouldn’t want to get it perfect right from the beginning.

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