Large Fierce Mammal

“Hunters in the Snow” by Pieter Bruegel the Elder, oil on wood, 1565.

“Normally I would have asked a policeman or a minister of the Church, but finding no one available, I thought it better to consult a man with some professional qualifications, rather than rely on the possibly confused testimony of a passer-by.” ~ In the wake of a bicycle accident due his tire pump having got stuck in his sock, resulting in his fruit cake being damaged on one side and now having grit all over it, a completely uninjured Mr. Pither explains to a doctor why he has nonetheless consulted him in his office for no other reason than to ask for directions to Iddesleigh — Monty Python’s Flying Circus, Episode Thirty-four: The Cycling Tour

I wish to greet you all upon this second day of the calendar year 2026 of the Common Era with a thought exercise.

1. Are you the Foremost Living Authority on yourself?
2. Do you think and act in certitude of your natural endowments and talents, predispositions both positive and negative, acquired knowledge, skills, and habits for better or worse?
3. Do you have a grasp of how those factors play into your past mistakes, successes, accomplishments, and failures (also known as successful discovery of more ways that don’t work)?
4. What would be the outcome were you faced, knowing what you know at this moment, with a sudden revisiting of past misadventure right now, without warning? How about a year from now?
5. Do you understand the meaning of, and bend every fibre of your being to, bringing the Best of Yourself to any endeavour, of any size, under any conditions and at any time in any place, in any company?
6. Do you accept the Best of Yourself to be a fluid and transitional state measurable only against YOU as a baseline?
7. Are you prone to letting your thoughts and actions be boggled, even fettered, or burdened with hesitancy born of overthinking in the face of real or feared dissenting opinion(s)?
8. Do you accept, think, and act in recognition of the Value of Risk?

Loaded questions all, to be sure, and far from a complete list, but offered as a framework for directing thoughts, efforts, and resources for anyone desiring to less resemble the aforementioned Mr. Pither. No harm done in earnest pursuit of advice, guidance, mentorship, or an observed example (good or bad). The evil lies in naive outsourcing of vital personal executive functions that may easily lead down a path selected for you to a destination unassailably named to be, “For the Greater Good.”

I will close today with this by way of the Esteemed Maestro Adam Crown, drawn from the invaluable library to be found in his excellent Swordmastery YouTube channel. In the face of competing interests for which your Attention stands as your TRUE Net Worth, I encourage you to shun those efforts in favour of giving this Gentleman the next three and three-quarter minutes of what is Rightly and Truly yours to spend.

Or not, as in the example of Mr. Pither who trusts to the doctor absent concern that he may really not much like Iddesleigh, proffering directions instead to an alternate destination he feels will be much better enjoyed.

Whichever your leaning, here’s The Archer’s Lesson: You Always Hit What You Aim At …