What’s Your Bellwether?

Pleasingly clean kitchen countertopI think I may have written on this topic before, but I can’t find it in a website search.  In any case, it’s a topic worth addressing again.

First of all, what on earth is a “bellwether”?  We hear this expression all the time, especially in the political arena.  It means an indicator: “This primary is a bellwether of the climate in this election” or a predictor, often used with the words “Of change”:  “This primary is a bellwether of change in this election.”  The origin of the word is fascinating and never, ever referred to in any way, so I’ll refer to it now.

A “wether” is a male ram or goat, and if he’s a bellwether he wears a . . . bell.  He’s the leader of the flock.  So you can see how the word got its meaning, as this animal could either indicate where the flock was by the sound of his bell, or he could predict the direction the flock would take by his own position out in front.  Wherever he’s going, the rest of the flock will follow.  Isn’t that just the coolest thing you ever heard?  I used to think that “bellwether” referred to a weather vane, showing which way the wind was blowing, but that little idea of mine didn’t account for the bell.  (I assumed that “weather” had dropped its “a” at some point.)  And while we’re on the subject, how many times when you hear the words “political arena” do you think of an actual arena with some sort of competition going on?

Now that you’ve had your etymology lesson for the day (not entomology, since we’re discussing animals and not insects), I can return to the subject at hand:  personal bellwethers.  The kitchen countertop above is my own, and you can practically see yourself in it.  Nothing is on it but the things that are supposed to be there.  I spent about an hour last night getting everything put away, everything put in the dishwasher or washed by hand, all the stainless steel and granite polished with my wonderful Norwex microfiber cloth.  (More on that product at some other time.)  When the kitchen stays a mess for days and days, especially after one of my big cooking/baking extravaganzas, that condition shows my state of mind.  The mess also predicts my state of mind, because as long as the place stays a mess I stay depressed.  It’s a leading indicator, as it were.  So I can do one of two things:  I can dig myself out of the negative state of mind and then clean up the kitchen, or I can clean up the kitchen and that action will change my negative state of mind.  Either way, it works.

Perri Klass, the pediatrician and writer who was mentioned in last week’s post on Sue Klebold’s book, is a knitter.  She says that when her life seems out of control, when she feels depressed, she asks herself, ‘Have I been doing any knitting lately?’  Usually the answer is no.  So she hauls out her needles and yarn, picks out a pattern, and is soon back on track.  Knitting is her bellwether.  For other people, a bellwether might be the numbers on the scale:  not that they necessarily mean anything in and of themselves, but a change (usually, let’s be honest, upwardly) says something about how life is going.  Maybe exercise has gotten squeezed out of a busy schedule, or taking the time to cook healthy meals.  Maybe there’s just a general lack of paying attention, manifested in the mindless munching of M&M’s.  (Sorry.  Couldn’t resist.)  Whatever.

Do you have a leading indicator in your life?  What is it showing you right now?  How could you make us of it?