The Art of Asking for Help
At some point in your life you’ve probably injured yourself.
This week in the studio, I threw my back out. I arrived early in the morning to start a full day of work. The first thing I did was prep my jigsaw, and then I picked up a medium sized piece of plywood to mark out cuts. As I went to put the plywood onto the table, I felt an almost electric pain shock me in the lower back. And that was it: full-on lower back injury!
As always, when working on a big project I do a lot of lifting, bending, balancing, contorting—much of it up on a ladder. On Saturday I did all of the above, with a 10 foot plumbing pipe and some very heavy plywood. I left the studio that day feeling productive and powerful. Little did I know I had set myself up for an injury the following day.
And here I come to a very important question: Could I have avoided this?
The answer: Absolutely yes.
My work is incredibly physical. I consider the preparation for a largescale installation to be a training period—like preparing to run a marathon. (I’ve run one full marathon and many halfs.) I try to be in the best shape possible. I aim to head into an installation as if it were race day—fit, well-rested, focused, prepared to perform at my best. (My work gets made almost entirely on-site in a short period of time.)
Like the marathon training I did many years ago, I trained with a running buddy. The success of my training relied on the mutual commitment I made to my training partner, and them to me.
I know my success in almost anything I do is a result of the support of others. I’ve had success because I have relied on my community.
This community includes colleagues, peers, gallery directors, students, friends and family.
So what does this have to do with injuring my back? I could have asked for help.
I’m sure a second set of hands in the studio—for even a few minutes—would have avoided the strange lifting and balancing I did all on my own on Saturday. Why didn’t I ask for a hand? Impatience, stubbornness to do it all myself, and an ever-present resistance to asking for help were all reasons why I now find myself in pain.
As the acupuncturist said “You’re injured now, so no need to beat yourself up about it. In the future, you will ask for help.” And I will do just that. My “training” this summer will include reaching out to my community for easy tasks (and possibly paying an assistant.) I would urge you to also reach out to me and to your community when you need it!
When thanking a neighbor for lending me some tools a few years back, he said to me “We’re neighbors, we’re here to help each other.”
I love this sentiment and the actions that come from it.
May we all ask for help and support each other,
Sonya
