Courage To Try

For a generation of women in the 60’s Julia Child took the fear out of cooking.  She is famous for her live television moments when things didn’t quite turn out as planned.  What made her so endearing to fans was the undaunted way she handled mistakes.

The most memorable episode was Julia flipping a pan sized potato pancake.  She said, “When you flip anything you must have the courage of your convictions.”   She then gave the pancake a big flip.  It caught on the lip of the pan and fell on the stovetop.  She quickly patched it up and said, “The only way to learn to flip things is just to flip them.”

Just flip them.  I find that phase a mantra of fulfillment.  For me it means having the courage to take a risk and be okay with the outcome.  Too often we seize upon the idea of perfection as the truest measure of success ignoring the noble efforts when the flip didn’t quite make it.  Sometimes a little catastrophe is a lesson and a liberation.  

I can’t think of a more appropriate environment for a little catastrophe than school.  For many children the flip will not make it.  They have to learn how to patch it up and more importantly they have to experience the lesson of patching it up.  

The best teachers will encourage their students along this path by making room for mistakes.  Mistakes should be understood and part of the norm in learning anything. If students are comfortable in sharing their mistakes they will have the courage to “just flip” even when they are uncertain of the outcome.   

Most of what we plan to do turns out differently.  It takes humility and courage to continue when things change.