[Ansteorra] The first installment of Uncle Jovian's "Thought on A&S"

[Jay Rudin]

>	I was talking to my first apprentice and I shared this bit of advice… “You’re on the right track, but remember this. Some people will be made ahead of you. Some of them will have played a shorter amount of time than you have. Some may be less talented than you are. Others will have been made for political reasons. A few might leave you thinking ’What the… heck!’ Our award system isn’t completely fair, it never will be completely fair. Simply knowing this will help you weather the future shocks and surprises.”
>	Later on, my apprentice (now a Laurel) told me this was perhaps the best piece of advice she had heard.

Robin's Commentary

It is my belief that you will get the awards you deserve.  It is ***NOT*** my belief that you will get the awards when you deserve them. Also, you will not get an award if you stop doing it before you get the award.

(Note: I also do not believe that you will get the awards you think you deserve.  If you wonder why you don't have an award, ask somebody you trust why you don't have it.  Asked in private, this is a reasonable question, usually answered reasonably.)

So don't sweat the award system.  It doesn't track what you're worth, or what you do.  At best it tracks what people have finally understood about what you do, which happens long after they notice what you do, which happens long after you start doing it.

Especially, don't sweat the peerages.  They do not track your level, or your ability, or your worth.  They only track what work you are now required to do.  A knight isn't somebody who has reached a certain level of fighting progress; he's somebody who's been given the job of watching other people's fighting progress.

Robin of Gilwell / Jay Rudin

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