I’ve heard history described as “the story of things that almost didn’t happen.”
It’s very easy to look back at the past and see an inevitability, a purpose. But if you look closely that purpose evaporates, pops like the thin soap bubble it is. There are so many near misses in history that it’s amazing to think about where we are today and how we got here, all almost by chance.
The other day someone I knew in college posted a picture on Facebook. It was Halloween, 1980. Three happy girls were made up in costume. That, right there, was a record of a moment that almost didn’t happen, and without it, my life would have been completely, unimaginably different. That was the night that I noticed the girl on the right in the picture. Less than a year later we were married. And this August we’ll have been married 31 years.
That night I was dressed up in tights with a cape and a helmet. I looked completely ridiculous. And I was trying to attract the attention of another girl who was completely oblivious and pursuing someone else. When that became clear I sat down, not terribly disappointed, and noticed the pretty brunette sitting next to me. It was such a short, passing moment, and I sometimes wonder what would have happened if I hadn’t stopped and seen her sitting next to me. I don’t like to dwell on that.
Life is anything but inevitable. But it continually amazes me how when I stop pursuing something that isn’t really right for me that I discover something perfect.
This is more advice to myself than to anyone else. Slow down. Open your eyes. Pay attention. Stop pursuing things that you think you should and look for things that you really want.
Don’t miss out.
The Almost Didn’t Happen by Randy Murray, unless otherwise expressly stated, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
{ 0 comments… add one now }
{ 3 trackbacks }