Anticipating Positivity
by Harry Watson
My father was a Firefighter from the early 1930s through to the mid-60s. His many tales of those days held me spellbound as a boy. He often made mention of ‘anticipation’, that sixth sense for impending danger, by use of which he and his colleagues escaped several catastrophes; especially through the Blitz.
My first job as a Forensic Scientist in the early 1970s was far less hazardous. No need for a sixth sense. Just a meticulous, analytical approach. Real world forensic science is not the drama of CSI or Silent Witness.
In the late 70s, an opportunity arose for a new challenge.
A change in direction into ‘Computing’. It was something of an infant industry at the time. Computers then had less ‘power’ than today’s mobile phones while occupying vast amounts of square footage. I went on to spend over 40 years delivering High-Tech solutions in Aerospace and Defence. It was in that career that my father’s words on anticipation took on more relevance. Anticipation, or gut-feel if you will, of hotspots in a plan, or risks with a solution, was key to the success I achieved. I had a natural aptitude for ‘seeing’ problems early. By doing that you might avoid them or have a mitigation plan standing by should avoidance prove impossible.
However, there was a side effect to that aptitude. Constant focus on things that might go wrong diluted my appreciation of the things that went right. Slowly but surely such a perspective was distorting my broader view. The effect was undetectable to me but thankfully not to family and friends. Over time, they saw clouds begin to cover the sunny side of my personality.
My focus became the downside risk on everything from weather forecasts to holiday plans.
How, then, to address the imbalance?
A change of career may seem the obvious solution. However, despite its demands, I derived much energy from what I did. I felt a shift in career might merely swap one negative side effect for another; that of feeling unfulfilled. I needed an activity that could sit alongside the day job, but which encouraged me to look to the positive.
I began to write.
First, a daily journal. This helped to flush the more downbeat thoughts from my day and put things in a better perspective. Then came story writing. My first effort was a short Christmas story about my then four-year-old daughter, who is forty now, fighting against sleep to catch a glimpse of Santa Claus. Over the years, the stories, especially the Christmas ones, grew in length, encompassing such topics as ghosts, romance, fantasy (including a tipsy Santa) and time travel.
They allowed for a world in which everything came right in the end. I did not intend the stories for publication but as a creative diversion and an amusement for my friends and family.
My colleagues became interested in my writing and along came a request to write the foreword of a book on Project Management. It’s still available, I believe. A bridge between my creative world and the day job.
In my latter working years, I used Social Media to post a weekly ‘Positive’ allowing me to recalibrate my working week with a focus on the good stuff. After I retired last year, I developed these posts into a weekly ‘Reflection’, very much a personal view on an issue.
Since lockdown began, I’ve ‘lightened’ these to humorous escapades of my life and travels. I enjoy that publishing these reflections on social media leads to immediate dialogue with an audience.
As I planned for retirement, I gave much thought to what I might do. My job demanded long hours within a challenging environment and much ‘anticipation’. While working, it proved difficult to find time to engage meaningfully with my local community. I knew I needed stimulus in retirement but I also wished to give something back to that community.
I became a School Reader, helping primary school children with their reading skills. It proved to be a good decision. There is much reward in seeing a young mind develop, with effort on their part and encouragement on mine.
Sharing joy with a youngster who pronounces a tricky word correctly or completes a sentence with fluidity, expression, and harmony; seeing a young face turning towards you full of pleasure at their achievement.
I also became a volunteer at my local community museum which is funded from local taxes and contributions from ‘Friends’. My first role was to meet and greet visitors. Then came ‘promotion’ to object handling which is all about demonstrating historical items to visiting groups and encouraging people to ask questions and grow their knowledge.
Their smiles and thanks are reward enough, as they discover something new about the area in which they live. There is pleasure to be found in learning, whether you are young or old. I much look forward to my return to school and the reopening of the museum.
My father was right. The anticipation of what might lie ahead is an important aptitude. I retired the negative side of that when I retired from from my working life in industry.
