When I'm Bad I'm Better

(WSJ illustration)

We are bad at being bad.

So many of us are terrible at being terrible. As our children venture off to school, sports, dances and music lessons, we implore them: Just try something, keep practicing, you’re only a beginner. And yet, faced with evidence of our own mediocrity, we wilt in embarrassment, avoid the thing or quit altogether....

Ms. [Karen] Rinaldi, whose experience led to a book about what you can learn from wiping out, recommends asking yourself: “What is it that you’ve always wanted to do or try but were too afraid?” Whatever it is, she says, start doing it. Should you struggle, embrace the fact that you’re a beginner.

The onset of middle age brings the realization that one will never...[fill in the blank]...in one's lifetime. The "never will" tabulation expands slowly, then acquires "never will do as well again" activities. The latter list includes, for your humble blogger, such disparate items as golf, chess, violin, and financial analysis.

On the bright side the fear of looking bad---pride's first cousin---has waned, and after retirement I've become a better cook, a more careful reader, and a more motivated do-it-yourselfer (within limits). None of these "talents" accrete social-status credits, but it's more than a fair exchange for a contented life with no expectations.