Row, Row, Row

Christmas is over, and we’ve reached that wonderfully strange week between Christmas and New Year’s. It’s not quite a holiday, but not quite a work week either. It makes for a great opportunity to work on the things you’re passionate about, but don’t always have time for. I’m catching up on a variety of creative projects, and taking the time to figure out what could have gone better this year. It’s all part of the plan to make 2020 as successful as possible.

It’s weeks like this, when you have plenty of time to work but no deadlines to meet, that you can actually begin to appreciate your crafts for what they are. We spend so much time pursuing our dreams that we sometimes forget why we had those dreams in the first place. Writing scripts is really, really fun! We choose to work hard at these things because we love them, but sometimes you forget that until you’re working without any actual stakes.

One of my favorite songs is “Row Jimmy” by the Grateful Dead. It’s a fantastic little reggae tune, and it’s one of those songs that’s poetic enough to mean just about anything to anyone. But the chorus is about a guy named Jimmy who’s just rowing. You never learn what he’s rowing towards, or why he’s doing it. But the lyrics “I said row, Jimmy row. Gonna get there, I don’t know. Seems a common way to go. Get out and row, row, row row, row” are absolutely gorgeous when it’s played right. I love the song because it’s about the beauty of pursuing a goal just for the sake of the pursuit of it. They’re not saying that he’ll absolutely reach his goal, no matter what. But he should find beauty in the tasks he does every day, because sometimes that’s better than the reward.

We have a whole year to think about getting where we’re going. We can spend 51 other weeks making five-year plans for ourselves and pushing our skills to the limit. But this week, let’s just row for the sake of rowing. Sometimes that’s the best gift you can give yourself.

Guest Blogger: Christian Zilko Might Get There, Doesn’t Know

For the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: 'If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today? ' And whenever the answer has been 'No' for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something.

— Steve Jobs