About me, why a watchmaker and what's with the enso?

After leaving school I spent 5 years as an apprentice toolmaker while attending Sandwell college and then spent the next decade working my way up to toolroom supervisor. I then set up a small property maintenance business.

In 2019 my wife and I spent 3 weeks touring New Zealand and while there I felt quite poorly but I just pushed through, climbing mountains and driving hundreds of Kilometres a day. Turns out I had aggressive stage 4 bowel cancer. (centre image)

After my surgery and I was physically and mentally in a terrible place. The return to health seemed impossible and at times nearly got the better of me. I began to read as it was about all I could manage. I read about consciousness, the brain, health, wellness and spirituality. I was generally looking for an answer as to why this happened to me and to how I could find a new direction in life. Around this time I had 3 tattoos that represented life and death. One being an enso. I love this symbol and the meaning behind it. Mainly that life isnt perfect and all journeys can start again. 

" When you believe that you have arrived at some final destination on your path, ensō reminds you to start again exactly at the point where you are now and to embrace and enjoy your unique experiences on life’s journey. "*

The image furthest to the right is me in 2024 at Birmingham City University horology department. It was a long road to recovery but I dont give up easy. 

While health wise I was getting stronger, I still needed a direction for life. And part of the turnaround happened when I met a guy called Lance Bennet, a watchmaker who happened to work near me and It was him who pointed me in the direction of BCU horology. A degree he himself had completed.

I needed a new career and as I love working on watches, I was already an engineer, so watchmaking seemed the perfect fit. Plus I had the time to retrain, little did I know how difficult a Horology degree would be. 

My consultants weren't keen on the idea of doing a full time university degree as it would be too hard on me physically.

But, climbing a snow capped mountain on the other side of the world with aggressive stage 4 cancer was much harder than sitting in a university workshop.

So, 3 years later and degree done, a first every year, a George Daniels merit award 3 years in a row, designed and made a working clock (now displayed in    https://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/see-and-do/clockmakers-museum  ) ... and now onto the next project.

I have many many people to thank for their help along the way, but you know who you are.

*https://modernzen.org/enso-htm/