Knowing When to Call Time.

A friend of mine is resigning today from an important voluntary post. She has held the post for many years and given so much over that time that it’s hard to imagine anyone else stepping into the space left by her departure.

My friend has had some family health issues recently and has needed to take on a temporary carer role. It goes without saying that when those closest to us need us then we drop everything and do whatever is needed without hesitation. And that, I believe, has focussed my friend to look at what is important and to reassess where her priorities are and ought to be.

Still, it will be incredibly difficult for her to step back from a role that she has done for so long. Where she has shown such commitment and dedication and where she has earned the respect of so many friends and colleagues for everything she has given over the years.

I try to train twice a week in a martial art that I’ve been doing, on and off for most of my adult life and consistently for the past decade. Even though I love the club, admire the people there and enjoy the friendships that I have made, I am struggling with the commitment of time required.

I have other roles and responsibilities that often conflict with the timing of the training so that on occasions I simply cannot attend the sessions. I know that when that happens I let down my teacher and my club. They rely on me to a degree to teach and guide more junior grades in their journey. Yet it is a fundamental law of nature that I cannot be in two places at once.

I’m not sure that my irregular attendance isn’t actually causing problems for my teacher – whether the club would be better off simply not having me around and making other arrangements rather than wondering if today is a day I can attend or not. I do try and give as much notice as I can, but I’m not sure that is enough.

It is also true that I am not physically the person I used to be. A titanium right shoulder and a seriously arthritic left one restrict what I can do. I’ve been warned that my metal body part is a once in a lifetime procedure that can’t be repeated, so if it breaks or wears down I’m reduced to being a one-armed bandit!

It is never easy to know when to call time on something that is important to us or is an important part of who we are. Yet inevitably, all things have their time and all things have an end. And however difficult, it is sometimes better to bow out gracefully than to try to squeeze the last of the juice out of a desiccated lemon.