Carol Wiebe

Number one. The best. The greatest. One and only. The one who won. First. Number two. Second best. Part of a pair.  Too much. Too little? Put them together and you have 1, 2. Easy counting. Accounting. The best and the second best, or the first and too little. Too little to have won. Or, you have a dozen. Twelve. A full complement of apostles. A full carton of eggs. Then there is 1/2. That’s not even one. But one can be half of two. Which is funny, because being number one is

. Gold stars are overrated. Expecting everyone to do their best at all times is oppressive, and can actually squelch creativity. The pressure to consistently perform and produce in a superlative, unsurpassed manner causes so much stress that many simply give up producing anything at all. Fear and inadequacy reign as the overly stringent standard flies. Or, the atmosphere becomes increasingly competitive and aggressive. After all, how can there be more than one who is the best

I may be in trouble. My husband Ted has started a blog called Ted’s Projects. This is the same Ted who created that stunning mosaic floor outside my studio, the concrete leaf which has morphed into some alluring rhubarb stepping stones, and so many wonderful and amazing things throughout our married life that it would be impossible for me to mention, or even remember, all of them. Put it this way: the man can do just about anything. You heard me right: anything. Of course, to