My Kind of Luck
Maybe if I had slowed down this week, it would have brought me the kind of luck I was looking for.
I always drive the speed limit. In fact, most of the time I drive slower.
My son tells me “drive faster” when he’s late for sports practice so I make sure to point out the speed limit sign to him when I see one. Then I’ll point to my speedometer. “See, I’m going the perfect speed,” I say.
There was a police car on the side of the road using his radar. It was the one time all year that I was driving fast. I had somewhere to be that was far away and I was anxious to get there.
I got pulled over and ticketed.
I’d like to be another person for one day, I thought, so I can see what kind of luck they have. Sometimes I feel like my weeks are a series of unfortunate events and I find myself saying “Why me?”
My husband and I decided to take a walk to the local taco restaurant in our neighborhood one evening. We walked down the main road to the restaurant and I wondered how many people I know are driving by and maybe even recognize me.
This thought pops into my mind because I stumbled over my own feet two - okay, three - times before we got to the restaurant. There wasn’t a hole in the ground or a large rock to be seen, just me flying through the air nailing a perfectly awkward landing. I need to buy a new pair of shoes, I tell myself as I regain my balance.
Do you ever feel like it’s just you? Like certain things only happen to you and everyone else’s day just goes along perfectly?
I checked out at the grocery store on Saturday, put all the bags in my car and realized I didn’t buy the sauce and pasta for dinner. Back into the store I go.
After the week I was having, I decided to take a step back (not literally because I’d likely trip over my own feet). When I find myself saying “Why me?” maybe it’s not bad luck. Maybe it’s something different.
Getting stopped by the police for speeding? I was feeling impatient and not quite myself.
Forgetting the grocery items? I had a million things on my mind and the sauce and pasta didn’t stand a chance of getting into my shopping cart.
Tripping when I walk down the street? Well, that’s mostly because I’m clumsy. But I will admit I always walk with a purpose, even when there’s no real reason to.
Maybe if I had slowed down this week it would have brought me the good kind of luck I was looking for - living one moment at a time, just being for 20 minutes with nowhere to go and nothing to do, taking a minute to look around and just notice what’s there.
When I do this, I feel more inspired, grateful, and just have better weeks.
If you enjoyed this story, you might also like:
Anna
