Frost crunched under the two figures’ feet as they walked quietly through the frozen Mississippi woods. Record cold blanketed the land as the grandfather felt how cold his grandson’s hands were. They needed to build a fire to stay warm. And they needed to do it now.
A cold front had blown through earlier in the week, leaving five inches of rain and Arctic air behind. The ground was frozen and the wood was wet. Building a fire would be difficult at best. The grandfather smiled and thought of Jack London’s “To Build a Fire.” That book made him cold even in August.
His grandson shivered and then squeaked, “Papa James, I’m cold.” Like the man in the book, the grandfather realized he had to succeed. Just hopefully with better results.
“I know you are cold Danny. We’ll have a fire going in no time.”
The little boy watched as his grandfather gathered the wood and believed him. The old man found some dryish leaves and brought them over, too. He fumbled in his pocket for a box of matches. They had the supplies. They had the desire. They had the need. Now it was up to his grandfather’s know-how. And his persistence.
The old man stacked the wood carefully and made it easy for oxygen to get into the fire. “Fire needs fuel and oxygen,” he told the boy. “Otherwise it will smother. That’s why you stop, drop and roll. You try to cut off the fire’s oxygen.”
The little boy was half listening. His hands were bitterly cold and hurt.
Each attempt at lighting the fire failed. The wood was wet. The leaves wouldn’t catch. But the grandfather didn’t quit. And he didn’t keep trying the same things. He adjusted his plan. He found some dry paper in his backpack and lit it. Eventually the wood ignited. And soon, the two were enjoying a toasty, blazing fire.
“Remember this boy,” the grandfather said as he held his shivering grandson tight. “Persistence is the secret ingredient of life. If we had quit, we’d be really, really cold. But we didn’t. And now we’re enjoying the warmth of a fire. Sometimes a fire won’t come easy. You have to keep trying new things and never stop until you get it to light.”
The lesson was lost on the little boy — until 35 years later.
Daniel sat in his office of his small business with his head in his hands. The numbers didn’t look good.
In a small gift shop in a suburb of Jackson, Mississippi, Daniel looked at the picture of his grandfather he kept on his office desk. What would the old man do in this situation?
Daniel had been laid off from his job in 2010. He had courageously taken the family savings and opened a small, unique gift shop that offered the best items of Mississippi. While his rent was high, his shopping center received great traffic. Until the outlet mall opened and sucked customers away like a black hole.
His business had gone cold. He needed to build a fire. And the wood was wet.
He thought of that night in the woods. He imagined his grandfather standing there calmly changing strategies. He had a goal and was going to achieve it — he had to achieve it. He thought of his grandfather’s persistence.
He looked around. He had been trying to do things they way he had done them the previous three years. Daniel sat down with a piece of paper and thought of ways he could get his business moving again, too. He Googled ideas and brainstormed. Like his grandfather flicking matches, he kept throwing new ideas out there until a fire started.
He changed his marketing strategy. He redesigned the floor plan of his store to make it more inviting. He used social media more and created a popular twitter account that offered free advice and personified his business. He told stories about each piece of merchandise in his store. He created a strong online storefront and began shipping unique Mississippi gifts worldwide. He became a storyteller and told his store’s story. He found his strengths — his dry wood so to speak — and he lit them.
Within six months, his store was enjoying record profits.
Daniel looked out at the customers in his shop and thought of his grandfather. He was thankful the old man had taught him not to quit when things were tough. Some grandparents give their grandkids toys and cash. Papa James had given him the gift of persistence during tough times. He tried new things instead of making excuses. And it was one of the most precious gifts of all.
A month into selling Banjo’s Dream and it has been a joy. The children’s book has sold differently thank my short-story book, Fried Chicken & Wine — which was a surprise runaway hit. Banjo’s Dream is a steady seller — one that when parents do buy it for their kids, they report back how much their children love it. I’ve had a half-dozen people in the past couple of weeks tell me that their kids want to read it every night. That makes me proud. And I had a parent come back and buy more for presents. That makes me smile. I know Banjo’s positive message is getting through to them.
