The Gate Opens on Your Side...

Going ten miles per hour under the speed limit this morning, necessitated by the Volvo in front of me, my mind started to wander.

"Who drives a new Volvo, a car known for it's excellent safety rating, that slowly? This person must be one scaredy cat."

And I was reminded of my father's wife. She was so terrified of getting into a car accident that she would drive nothing but Volvo's. She wouldn't drive at night. She wouldn't drive in bad weather. She wouldn't drive over bridges.

My father's wife lived a small life, in a small world, within her self-placed limits. She let her fears control her life, and as I watched, her world got smaller and smaller as the years went by.

Maybe it worked. She didn't die in a car accident.

She died at a young age, barely in her 50's, from pancreatic cancer. We have two schools of thought on that. One, she got the cancer from living for years under the power lines. Or two, she drank white wine out of the same plastic cup for years, probably at least ten. Not the good plastic.

What is the lesson here? I don't know. Maybe it's a way to put our fears in perspective. Since you can't cover all the bases, why cover any?

Susan eliminated the risks associated with driving, however, that doesn't seem to have been her destiny anyway. Think of all the things she missed because she wouldn't drive north over the Goldstar bridge...

It is my wish for you all today to do one thing, simply because it causes you anxiety. And when you've successfully completed that, have a Snickers bar to celebrate. And know you not only stretched yourself, but stretched your world, just a bit.

Peace