Labeling the Nails

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My father has a wall of jars filled with nails of varying sizes in the garage.

Recently, he relabeled the containers to make them easier to see.

He applied a strip of bright orange tape and then wrote the nail size in inches in large block lettering: ½, ¾, 1 ¼, 1 ½, 2, 2 ¾, and so on.

Dad turned 97 recently. He is healthy and fit. His memory is fabulous. But his eyesight has deteriorated.

The decision to re-label the nail jars is pushing back against the physical limitations imposed by age.

It will allow him to continue to use the tools for projects. It's a small adjustment that keeps him in the game.

I don't think dad thinks about it that way. He's an engineer and it's just an engineering problem that needs to be solved. The labels are a solution.

It’s also an extension of a personal organizational system he's used for decades. He assigns things a location and labels them.

His clothes closet has boxes that say “socks” and “T shirts.” The crawl space has hooks for each vacuum cleaner component. The garage has signs for the rake, broom, shears, trowel and shovel.

When I was younger, I viewed all this as a bit much.

But now, especially as I approach 60, I definitely see the utility.

The larger labels on the nails reflect on how we interact with our environment.

We spend so much of our youth trying to bend the world to our point of view.

As we age, most of us accommodate what can't be altered, accepting the limitations placed on us.

And by settling, many people end up doing less.

The wiser course taken by my father is to make the writing on the labels really large so you can press ahead.

(Part of a series of life lessons based on conversations with my parents.)

BRIEF OBSERVATIONS

WORKBENCH: My father’s current workbench. It’s evolved over the years as they have moved but the labeled containers of nails and screws are a constant. (The new labels are on the left.)

LOCK THEM UP: Nothing captures the tenuous and uncertain nature of the promise of America as the way private companies generously set out tables and benches for the public but lock them down against theft.

BENCHES IN BARCELONA: Barcelona nails down benches too, but at least there are more and there doesn’t seem to be fear people will sleep on them.

LOCKS OF LOVE: I’m a big fan of the love locks that people attach to bridges in Paris. Last time I visited I noticed that it had extended to Montmartre.

EVERYONE SHOULD DO THIS: Love this idea from Sahil Bloom.