Epiphany: E-P-I-P-H-A-N-Y. Definition one, The manifestation of a supernatural being. Definition two, a sudden moment of insight or revelation. Marinate on that though.
-T-Pain-
First off, I really like gaining insight from very unexpected sources. People are full of all types of wisdom if you can just filter it from the rest of the crap they're spewing.
I've been meaning to make this post along my stream of consciousness series for a while. So back on task. I was driving home from the JO the other week and I was riding around with no music trying to think about life. Sometimes you need to be able to hear yourself think. Alot of things I already knew and I already had formulated opinions on, but I just took some time to be real clear with myself about everything.
I was riding home and realized that I didn't know how to get home because it was my first day of work. Where I went at the beginning of the day and where I was leaving from were not the same so I had scoped out the area during lunch so I could have an idea of how to get home. Needless to say come punch out time I didn't remember how to get home. I couldn't remember right or left at a certain light so I went left. I needed to go right. So I said I'll just turn around at the next intersection, but I couldn't get over. So I took another left and drove on the next road over that should've paralleled with the highway I needed to ride home. I told myself I'd just take a left to get to the highway at the next intersection. The next intersection never came and the road got farther and farther off course. So I said at the next main road I'd just take it and go back towards the highway since I was too far down the road to turn around. I'd just find an alternate path. I missed that road too. So I said I'll ride this a little while longer and maybe I'll hit a main road. It didn't happen. I turned off just right before I was gonna get to the next highway. I saw it as I turned but I saw it in my rear view. So I went back to the last main road and rode it for a long time. It wasn't hitting the highway. By now I'd lost my original path and the thought of driving until I got to where I could take another route even if it was longer and contrary to how I needed to get home. So I finally think to flip out the SK and Google where I'm at and how to get home. This is 45 mins later. I've been so far off path I've wasted 45 mins of my life and gas. I still had the music playing at this point. When I thought to finally look it up is when I cut off the music. And that's when everything hit me. That's also when I found the path home. I found the right path. Long after I got off path. It was a really long drive from there. When I finally decided to ask for help. When I stopped trying to fix things on my own. That's when it hit me. That's the problem. Everyone gets off path at some point in their drive. You have to know when to ask for help. You have to know when to turn around. Now if you're here on this page you probably know me. You probably know my life. You probably know that I've been dealing with some stuff. You probably know that I'm working on alot of things internally. You probably know that while this is a real story, this IS NOT about driving.
In the hour it took me to get home I fine tuned alot of my thoughts. Here goes my stream of consciousness.
Traffic related lessons first.
If you get off path. Turn around. You know the way back. Men have a habit of never asking for directions. I thought that was a stereotype, but it has some truth to it. There's nothing wrong with asking for directions back if you do get that far off path. The easiest thing to do is to turn around while you still know the way back. Before you get way off path. It saves on gas and time. And we all know what gas prices are hitting for these days.
Watch for warning signs. The thing about warning signs is that they are just that...warning signs. They are signs that say warning. They are warning you of something and when something warns you about something, then that something is bad. If you see a red flag, it means warning. Warning signs say warning too. It's literal. Heed the warning signs.
Always check your blind spot. Before you move into the fast lane, check your blind spot. You feel like you have the overall picture, but the blind spot is called that because you can't see it. You might get into a major accident of you don't check your blind spot. Because you could easily run into the end of your life just like that. Take it for what it's worth.
Check your mirrors, but always look ahead. You should always check your mirrors. Be aware of what's going on around you. Know what's behind you, but always keep moving forward. If you take your eyes off the forward road you'll crash though, so you have to learn how to do both. If you need to go backwards in order to move forwards, then don't just use the mirrors, turn around, do what you need to do, look sideways, check your blind spot and then go forward. You've got to understand that.
"Sure I trust your driving, but I don't trust the other cars on the road." Good statement. Usually also said to someone who you don't trust on the road. Well at some point you have to let that person drive and understand that you can't control the other people on the road, but you can make sure that as long as you trust their driving that's all you'll ever be able to do. Sometimes you just have to make sure they're prepared enough and let them get out there on the open road.
Understand I'm not talking about traffic. See my growth here.
Learning lessons the hard way is so stupid. Look at the phrase. Learning lessons the HARD way.
He wants you to share your story with others. Sharing your testimony is an essential part of your mission on earth because it is unique...If you don't share it, it will be lost forever...Actually, your personal testimony is more effective than a sermon...Shared stories build a relational bridge that Jesus can walk across from your heart to theirs...Many people who won't accept the authority of the Bible will listen to a humble, personal story.
God teach me lessons for living so that I can stay the course...WHILE IT IS WISE TO LEARN FROM EXPERIENCE, IT IS WISER TO LEARN FROM THE EXPERIENCES OF OTHERS...Write down the major life lessons you have learned so you can share them with others...Mature people develop the habit of extracting lessons from everyday experiences. I urge you to make a list of your life lessons. You haven't really thought about them unless you have written them down.
So I finally read and finished a Purpose Driven Life and I've got to say it's great. You really do have to read it when you're ready and it'll work wonders for your life.
Other lessons I thought about on that long quiet ride. I imparted these to my sisters if they sound like I'm giving a lecture.
- Impart your knowledge. I've learned so much lately. I've been listening and hearing everything. I guess I'd call it actualizing. There's so much in life that we could learn from each other if we'd just share it. Everyone is so caught up on image and pride that often we have secrets and stuff we'll never speak on that could do wonders for the next generation. Believe me I know. Teach someone else from what you know. You might change their life for the better.
- Learn from other people's mistakes. If you see someone struggle through something, watch and learn. even if you don't see it, alot of life's lessons don't have to be learned from direct experience. Understand that people with more experience usually know what they're talking about.
- Take your time. Relax. Patience is a virtue. That's one of the hardest lessons I've had to learn. Especially in high school. Just relax. Be patient. It's hard. So much harder than you'd ever imagine. A teacher once told me in detention that it's in Proverbs that all things come to an end on earth. No matter what. No matter how bad times are, they will come to an end. So be patient.
- Think first, speak/act second. Not much needs to be said on that. It's wise. Wise people downplay their own knowledge; fools speak forth their stupidity openly. (Proverbs 12:23)
- Don't judge. This is sort of too big of a topic for me to tackle briefly. But who are you to judge. Let he who is without sin cast the first stone. (John 8:7) Why do you notice the splinter in your brother's eye, but do not perceive the wooden beam in your own eye? (Matthew 7:3) "You never know what a man is going through until you have walked in his shoes."
- In adult life, I'm sorry basically = please forgive me. It's important that you say all your please and thank you's and I'm sorry's, but it's better to live your life not needing to. You're going to have to live with your regrets. So try not to have any.
- Nothing fixes itself. Really. I thought the gas on my tires were low. My car needs to be washed. I'd like to get back to a former state of physical fitness. I want my girl back. Nothing fixes itself. If it's out of your control, then there's nothing you can do, but do what you can. Nothing is going to just work itself out. It doesn't work with the economy. It doesn't work with you.
- Stay on your P's and Q's. Having an awareness of your situation and surroundings is important. On the road. As a point guard. In social settings. Keep your head on a swivel.
- Don't step out of pocket. Basically stay within yourself. You character. Your fundamentals. If you're ever tempted to go against your fundamentals you should have dissonance. If you don't have dissonance then you're so far gone already. Even Michael Vick learned the hard way you can't step outta pocket.
- Put God first and everything else will fall into place. He may not come when you want Him, but He'll be there right on time. He'll never put more on you than you can bear. I know they're all cliches, but cliches are cliches for a reason.
- In general if you have a firm understanding of the English Language, there's nothing wrong with making up words. People will run with you if you have enough confidence in what you're saying anyway. They say it aint tricking if you got it. -Walt Disney- At some point though, faking it till you make it is not really a good idea.
- Don't be petty, but show that you don't not care. See even double negatives are useful sometimes.
- It's NEVER too late to change.
More another day.
BONUS!!!
It's been a long time coming for maturity
And that's truly what it has to be
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