i'm not the sharpest knife in the drawer...i don't know how else to say it. see, i was driving down i-10 this morning on my way to work, and a car flew by me at a pretty high rate of speed, swerving back and forth between lanes to pass the 'slower' drivers. my initial thought was, back in my younger days i was stupid like that...before i realized that life had consequences and sometimes things don't always happen to 'the other guy'...instead, they happen to you.
i thought about how i use to feel invincible, like nothing would ever happen to me... thinking i'd live to be 104 and die peacefully in my sleep...that disaster would never strike me. i also thought about how i might raise my children differently someday, to allow them to learn at a young age that their decisions in life do have consequences, some of them being disastrous, all the while doing my best to keep them safe from harm.
fast foward about 30 seconds... suddenly, i'm for some reason disappointed that hurricane ike has shifted paths and appears to be heading east of san antonio, putting us out of the direct path of danger. how can i think one thing one minute and then totally switch my philosophy the next? do i feel that dying in a car accident when someone runs a red light or crosses lanes of traffic is completely realistic, but being harmed by flying yield signs and falling tree limbs in the blowing winds and flood waters from a hurricane is totally out of the question? do i think that i have semi-control over my own destiny and ultimate fate? do i just seek a new kind of adventure? do i just need to see the sheer power of nature and chance in a different element? or perhaps i'm still in my younger days?
3 comments:
There's this event coming up in October called "Boss's Day." Pretty sweet. I was interviewing the keynote speakers this week prepping them for their discussion on "navigating change."
One of them, a mergers & acquisitions change guru, commented: "change is perpetual and undeniable. Everything around you is out of your control, you can only somewhat influence them. The 3 professional things you can control: your professionalism, ethics and integrity."
Dude, as you get older you start subscribing to the adage that nothing is constant in this life except for change.
I have to admit, I pretty much KNEW we wouldn't have a hurricane in San Antonio. I knew we would have maybe rain or heavy rain, and the evacuees but I just dont' see a hurricane blowing through as far inland as we are. I don't see it. I don't see it happening. Do I have flood insurance? Nope. Fire insurance and theft insurance, yes, but flooding? Nope. Even after you heard the horror stories of Katrina and how it took homes and no insurance company wanted to pay the value of the home,etc. I swore to myself that I would have something to fall back on if something that catastrophic happened. I have life insurance, health insurance, and renters insurance.
Here is another thought for you and for me. Thought for the day..
God is going to take you home when it is time to go. No matter what we say or do or what kind of provisions we have made. Hopefully, we won't suffer in the process.
I am with you.
--Sara
The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. (Deuteronomy 31:8)
Hurricanes are good. They purify and provide everyone the equal opportunity to grow stronger.
It's unlikely the family stuck in their attic trying to hack their way out with an ax would oft' agree.
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