Filter Coffee #073

On Paddling Your Own Canoe

Dear Readers,

‘Jack of All Trades’ featured in FC #72 was very well received. I greatly appreciate the comments.

Ashvini Ranjan believes that a woman is the true JoAT (or shall we say Jill of All Trades?). According to him, she raises a family, manages budgets, keeps the pot boiling and last but not the least strike that delicate work-life balance if she is also a career woman. 

Murali Neelakantan says, “I have always been an advocate of people acquiring more than one skill. There are too many instances of people with one great skill becoming obsolete.”

P A Verghese comments: “I wonder if the idea of a JOAT is still relevant in the modern world. Benjamin Franklin may only by a stretch of imagination be called one. He was a true master of the many things he purveyed. Not so rare, there were many others like him, Leonardo da Vinci for one, who excelled in many things”. He then wonders “Are JOATs relevant any longer? Is this still a desirable attribute? Can we even imagine now a world consisting only of JOATs and no specialists?”. Well, the jury is out on this.

The Jack of all trades is capable of handling many things without having to depend on others. Being self-reliant and not being dependent on others is perhaps an ideal situation. That is the point of discussion in this post.

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🛶 Paddle Your Own Canoe

Before I share with you the import of the captioned idiom, let me first recall those famous lines penned by the Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore.

“Jodi tor daak shune keu na aashe tobe Ekla Cholo Re” 
(if no one responds to your call then walk on your path alone)

You can get more information here: Ekla Chalo Re

The idiom ‘paddle your own canoe’ means to be self-reliant and act independently. It goes a step beyond ‘ekla chalo re’ which exhorts you to be on your own if no one comes to your aid. When you paddle the canoe, you decide to seek no one’s help but pursue your goal all by yourself with passion.

Back in 1850, an American poet and women’s rights activist, Sarah Bolton wrote the poem ‘Paddle Your Own Canoe’. I am quoting one of its many stanzas which I think sets the tone for my thoughts.

When the world is cold and dark,
Keep an aim in view,
And toward the beacon mark
Paddle your own canoe.

(the full version can be accessed here: Paddle Your Own Canoe by Sarah T. Bolton)

The figurative meaning of 'padding one's own canoe' began to be used in the early 19th century. This was used in 1807 by the author of The Selangor Journal, published in Kuala Lumpur, when he reported the lack of community spirit amongst the coffee planters in Malaysia. He said:

“If the planters would unite and use their united influence they could start a bank to advance money to deserving young planters... but they won't do it. They let each poor fellow paddle his own canoe.”

The imagery of self-reliance appealed to the founder of the Scouts Movement, Lord Baden-Powell and he used idiom as the title of a book in 1939, perhaps exhorting the Scouts & Guides to be self-reliant.    

I have come across many men and women (more women of late) who are fiercely independent and are loath to ask for help. Their ability to paddle their own canoe is fuelled by a strong desire to be self-reliant. They foresee the possibility that life may not be smooth sailing and that the canoe might capsize in the choppy waters of life. Yet, they are relentless in their pursuit of the end objective and they seem to live up to the inspiring words of Sarah Bolton: 

Nobly dare the wildest storm, 
Stem the hardest gale; 
Brave of heart and strong of arm, 
You will never fail

Often, people might suddenly find themselves in utter distress. Loss of property, loss of a soulmate or a tragic accident may leave them in dire straits. Some will simply give up and wallow in self-pity or blame it all on fate. There are others who brave the odds stacked against them and plod along with unshakable belief in themselves and the determination to overcome the distress. These people are the figurative representation of Sarah Bolton’s next verse:

When the world is cold and dark, 
Keep an aim in view, 
And toward the beacon mark, 
Paddle your own canoe

It is very common for people to use the adage, ‘we are in the same boat’. It is an expression of empathy and nothing more. It does not disclose their collective effort to overcome the same predicament they are in. If they went on to say “we are in the same boat and let us together paddle to safety”, it would imply that they are determined to not let the boat capsize.

Imagine an optimist telling a pessimist, ‘we are in the same boat’ and the pessimist saying wistfully, ‘maybe so, but I don’t know how to swim”. The conviction of the optimist that he will paddle the canoe to safety is encumbered by the defeatist attitude of the pessimist. But the optimist persists nevertheless to paddle to a safe harbour.

My father was busy practising law and my mother single-handedly managed the affairs of a large joint family. She did all that Ashvini mentioned. In 1976 when my father passed away, my mother lived in Mysore all by herself until 2003 when she died at the age of 93. My brother and I, her daughters and the daughters-in-law were ever eager to take care of her but she was unrelenting in her belief that living independently keeps the flock together and promotes harmony. She visualised the possibility of her being rotated among the children and the possibility of her unwittingly interfering with their ways of life and habits. For so long as she lived, her Mysore house was frequented not just by her sons and daughters but also by relatives near and far. When my wife insisted that she leave Mysore and live with us she told her, “I always wanted to be the woman of the house and you too should be one. My shadow should not eclipse your position.” She paddled her canoe all the way. My readers may have come across such individuals and I would like to hear from them.

All of us are familiar with kids from rich families. There may be a boy from one such family who astutely avoids using his father’s position to further his prospects, takes public transport and even works shifts in one of the eateries to earn his own money. Sounds far fetched and difficult to believe? Well, he has chosen to paddle his canoe. Contrast this with a spoiled rich kid who has an indulgent parent. He feels entitled to all that there is and loses focus on studies and gets into bad company. He paddles his own canoe not knowing where he is heading and not knowing where the shore is. He has no ‘beacon’ to beckon him to safety. Paddle he will until he can no longer paddle and drifts along towards perdition.

Paddling the canoe is not something that applies to all situations. There are situations where men and women alike will need the help of others but there are certain other situations where they would not like to depend on anyone and would like to deal with that situation themselves. 

The ultimate message in ‘ekla chalo re’ is that you should paddle your own canoe if no one responds to your call.

There are many Indians who have paddled their own canoes to accomplish what they believed in. Unfortunately, space is a constraint. But please click on this link: 68 Modern-Day Heroes Of India! How Many Of These Do You Know About?

You will be amazed at the number of ordinary people with extraordinary achievements. They accomplished this by epitomising Sarah Bolton’s words: “Keep an aim in view, and toward the beacon mark, paddle your own canoe”.

All of us need to bear in mind that as one goes through life, one learns that if you don’t paddle your own canoe, you will stay where you are.

Let me end on a mirthful note:

Question: What's the difference between Joan of Arc and a canoe?
Answer: One is Maid of Orleans and the other is made of wood.

I hope you enjoyed this week’s edition, and do share your thoughts. I look forward to hearing from you on how and when you had to paddle your canoe and also about people who have left an indelible impression on you by paddling their canoes. 

Until next week, paddle your canoe to safety and do take good care of yourself. Ciao.

PS: Having given you some gyan about the canoe may I call this post canoepanishad?