I recently read that the still-performing grandfather in a family of circus tightrope acrobats said that “The rope is life; everything else is just waiting.”  I do not have that clarity of purpose in my life but can perhaps describe my rope as a network of rabbit trails that allow me to explore things and exercise  creativity, if only in the choice of fork in the trail.

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In my personal time, I paint pictures, weld sculpture, play music, repair old fiddles, maintain and ride a Ural motorbike with my dog in the sidecar, research and write about history and oddities such as Civil War anvils, keep bees and restore old buildings (including the Fannie Thompson House in Greenville, Virginia, the home of a formerly enslaved person, listed on the National Register of Historic Places).

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All my life, as a farm kid, student, military officer and lawyer, I’ve been presented with problems with the expectation that I would provide the correct or desired answer or solution. Making decisions and implementing them was a way of life. That usually involved quick evaluation with immediate instructions or action. In contrast, mediation allows clarification of joint purpose, recognition of the intense feelings as people work through a conflict and finding a solution without “winners” or “losers.”

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Guiding people to understand and respect others’ positions and come up with their own mutually acceptable solution is rewarding.