- Say NO to the "Be a Specialist" or "Be a Generalist" crowd.

  - Be masterful at one thing, but be okay at a lot of things.

  - You're not trying to be MacGyver. You're trying to be MacGyver's more practical cousin who survives longer.

  ---

  I never really bothered with wires before the apocalypse. You flip a switch, things turn on. That's it. Magic. Sorcery. Wizardry sealed behind plastic panels and angry sparks.

  Alex showed me the basics. Circuits. Voltage. How not to electrocute yourself when prodding things with a screwdriver. I’d like to say I paid attention because I was a diligent student—but really, it was because she smiled every time I got something right. Like I had just solved cold fusion with a potato.

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

  In return, I taught her how to swing properly, how to spot danger in reflections, and how to keep your back to the wall when you sleep.

  We were trading skills like Pokémon cards.

  But there was something off that I noticed...

  She didn’t just teach because she wanted me to learn. She taught because, I think, she didn’t know what to do for herself.

  She only cooked because I scavenged food. She only fixed flashlights because I needed them working. She never once said she wanted something just for her. Not even once.

  It's a reach, I know. I don't even know how I got to that conclusion. But I just do. I felt like I knew what was going on in her mind.

  Still, seeing her talk excitedly about lithium cells and power banks was a step. Even if she thought it was for me—it was also from her.

  So yeah. Learn stuff. Doesn’t matter if it’s electrical engineering or how to use duct tape as a tourniquet.

  Knowledge is power. Literally, in her case.