I have been painting houses on and off for the better part of 30 years. That phrase, “Painter’ll fix it,” is the only phrase other than, “Close enough for government work,” that can make my skin crawl. You could add, “Can’t see it from my house,” to the list, but the other two still have top billing.
Here’s what that statement means. It means whoever came before the painter did a sub-par job knowing that the painter is always last in line to finish up on the jobsite and will now be forced to make their lousy work look like it’s part of the Sistine Chapel. It means the painter is now going to have to double or triple the amount of time they allocated to complete that job and they aren’t going to get a penny more for their efforts. If it’s all rolling downhill, the painter is always going to be at the bottom of that hill.
I still believe painters are the most taken advantage of profession in the building industry. People don’t understand how much a good painter has to do to make their work look its best. It may be due in part to the fact that painting is one of the easiest professions to start. All you need is a trip to Sherwin Williams to grab a dropcloth, a paintbrush, and a roller and !POOF! you’re a painter.
This is a drastic side note, but folks need to pay attention to what’s happening in the trades right now. There aren’t as many people walking into Sherwin Williams trying to become painters these days. All of the trades are suffering from the lack of new talent entering the workforce. People are going to start really noticing it – even as soon as within the next decade. Mike Rowe, one of my personal favorite people on the planet, has a platform completely devoted to this soon-to-be crisis.
End side note. Back to the matter at hand: Painters fixing everyone else’s problems.
Being a painter taught me more about healing and restoration than any other profession, sermon, or college course could. Think about it for a second. A hole in the wall is an obvious problem. It’s a big problem. Everyone that comes in your house can see it. You can try and hide it behind a picture, but covering up the issue doesn’t solve it. Painter’ll fix it.
You have a door and the paint starts peeling and flaking off. The door looks great for now, but the peeling paint is eventually going to be an issue. Do you need to simply put another coat of paint on it or is there a more significant issue that needs to be addressed lurking under that good-looking coat of paint? Painter knows. Painter’ll fix it.
People come in all shapes and sizes. Everyone has issues. Some folks have giant holes in the wall. They’ve been in bad shape for so long, they don’t think it’s possible to fix the holes. Maybe they had a good thing going and messed up in a big way, putting a giant hole in their previously perfect looking wall.
Some folks look really good on the outside but they have these issues no one can see that are going to cause all kinds of problems down the road. They can take the quick route and slap another coat of paint on to cover back up or they can go through the more difficult and restorative process of addressing the root issue and end up with a much longer-term solution.
The point is, neither issue makes a person too far gone. Problems don’t fix themselves. It takes community, hard work, and grace, but restoration can be realized in even the most difficult cases. Your story, my story, our stories don’t end because our perfect presentation has suddenly or gradually become less than perfect. It’s an opportunity to take part in the healing and restoration process. All you need to do is find a painter to help you fix it.