BackBumps In The Road
By Jeffrey S. Morales
To begin our journey in life we must first get on the highway that leads us to our future. In the beginning, the future looks good. As we start on our journey we are sent on our way with a full tank of gas, (and for the more fortunate, a bag of chips and a cold drink).
As we begin our travels to 'Destination Unknown' we will have to make many decisions along the way. Jimmy Buffet says, "I may not know where I am going, but I'll know it when I get there". TRUE FACT: Most people do not know what they want to be when they grow up. Some people even spend their lives stuck on deciding whether to grow up or NOT! (I admit I tackled this question longer than most.)
Some of us start out with a great deal of challenges that make it difficult to look past the present and see the future ahead. No matter where your starting point is in life, remember: Ride on.
On our highway of life we will come across exits to get on and off of each exit represents a decision, some good and some not so good. The longer we drive on life's highway, we can start to see the difference (if we choose to) between the good and no so good exits. Sometimes, in life, we choose a bad exit. This decision can put us on an extended detour (like prison) leaving us to lose some ground until we find our highway again. The fact is that when a detour ends you have to be prepared to ride on. O.K., so what if your past has more not so good exits than good ones?
Is avoiding to choose an exit in the future the answer? "Even when you choose not to choose you still have made a choice." (Lyrics by Rush) In life you have to learn to "take the good with the bad". (Yeah, yeah, it's another quote, but I don't know who said it so it doesn't count.) However, it's true. Life is an adventure, if and only if you open your mind to it! You can even learn from the not so good decisions.
Most times when we look back on the 'not so good' times we can feel good about ourselves because we survived it and moved forward. That means you're riding on.
So NOT choosing is NOT an option. (And yes, that means you are still making a choice.) I am personally excited about the future and the road in front of me. While on the highway of life I have chosen not so good exits, I still try to walk away with something learned from it. I try to think of the things that lay ahead, like the birth of a child; or birthdays, wife's (only one at a time); new cars, travel, better jobs, business ventures, houses, and $50.00 scratch-off ticket winners. The list goes on...
Somewhere on the highway of life is the exit that will lead me to the 20 lb. Bass everyone catches but me. (If you know the exit, don't tell me.)
One final thought: "What about the bumps in the road?" These are the things you don't control and can screw up a good road trip. I was recently running down life's highway (actually I was on a detour, looking for it), when 'WHAM!' I get a flat. I can grumble about it but it doesn't change the fact that my tire is still flat. Can I get mad at the tire? No, the tire probably doesn't want to be flat either. AHH-HA! How about whatever made my tire go flat? Yes, I can do that. However, the true answer is still "No". So who or what do I get mad at?
The answer is "Nothing".
In order to move on, you need to fix the flat. Any energy used other than the task at hand is wasted energy. Simply get past the flat as best you can and ride on.
When you do, later down the road you can look back and feel proud you overcame it. Learn from the exits, detours and bumps in the road and look forward to finding the next ‘ good exit', like perhaps an exit with a discount tire store.
Ride on.