It was a wet morning. I was taking my favorite 4x4 out for a
drive. It was a 1999 Limited Toyota 4Runner
with every bell and whistle you can imagine.
I find myself still missing it today.
The rain was pouring down and in Arizona,
that is unique. I had just moved from New Mexico and
unfortunately I was not used to such deluges.
As I entered an off ramp, I felt distinctly that my back tires had lost
just slight bit of traction. It was then that I remembered that I had forgotten
to lock the rear differential by activating the button on the dash. If it was activated, I am sure that I would
still be driving my 4Runner today.
Anyway, as my rear tires lost their traction, I corrected just a bit,
and suddenly my rear tires swung violently in the opposite direction. The rear of my truck slammed the concrete
barrier and shot straight toward the opposite side towards a 40-50 foot drop
off that was only cordoned by a single metal guard rail. That guard rail would be put to the ultimate
test that day to verify if it was capable of stopping a 2 ton out of control
vehicle. I closed my eyes, said a prayer and waited. All I felt and heard then was the pop of
glass and steel as the vehicle tumbled in a direction that I didn't know. When the vehicle came to a stop, there I was
safe and sound, altogether in one piece.
That day changed my life. I am
much more cautious on the exit ramps I travel, almost to a point where
I find myself slowing down too much.
Many people today encourage me to let that day become a blur in my mind
so I can get over my newly found phobia, but that is exactly what prompted
today’s question. How will you remember
life?
Life, if you are an adult, is a much too fast and fleeting
anomaly that most of us can’t even begin to comprehend the full meaning
of. People die young, some die old. Some are taken from us in tragedy and others
live on despite their maniacal actions.
In this brief moment we have, we sincerely try to understand the full
scope of the life we have been given, only at times to feel a sense of being
much too overwhelmed.
When we boil it down, life can be skipped over like a blur,
or it can be fully lived out in detail.
I don’t always want to remember the foolish things I did. They serve as a reminder of how crazy my life
was and I’ll admit, sometimes still is.
But it’s in those details where I find that I truly can see the amazing
journey I am on, and also where I am headed.
When we live life merely in order to get past the day, many
of the important lessons I feel we are supposed to learn get washed away. It is only in those details where we will
ultimately find the answers to our questions of, “Why?”
In the meantime, let me encourage you to enjoy the details
without regret. I promise you will fall
a few times, lose control a few other times, and sometimes even behave badly,
but treasure them. They are golden
moments that move you forward.
There will always be
Weddings and Funerals, Birthdays and Anniversaries; but it is how we choose to remember them
that give our life meaning and purpose.
I am reminded of the now classic movie “Life is Beautiful.”
Ironically, it is a movie about the Holocaust.
What makes this tale so unique is in the way the main character chooses
to experience each of the traumatic experiences that are unfolding around him.
That’s the answer. Our life will ultimately be what we choose it to be. Positive or Negative.
There is no time
machine, there is no 2nd chance, and in no way will we ever be able to exchange our life for that of someone else. This is our one shot, live it out loud in fine detail, just like it was
meant to be!
-Lou
No comments:
Post a Comment