The Umbrella
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May 29, 2017, The Umbrella
I always got out of the car. For me rain comes in two sizes. The first is the umbrella size. Umbrellas work and, except for shoes, you don’t get wet. The second is the blowing size. The wind blows and it doesn’t matter how big your umbrella is - you are going to get soaked. Picture me sitting in my car and it is pouring buckets – do I get out or wait? I already told you – I‘d get out and get soaked. Did I learn that waiting might be a better idea? Yes, it just took a while and a lot of wet clothes. The event that ultimately changed my thinking was the time the rain stopped as I walked into the building soaked to the skin. I even started bringing an umbrella in the car. The saying goes - Into every life a little “rain” must fall. Here is the tricky part. Does this saying suggest that “rain” is a bad thing - or a good thing? Some folks divide life into work and play – I did for years. During those years I thought of “rain” as a bad thing – it was anything that kept me from getting to play. After a while the work-play thing didn’t seem to work anymore - and I began to see “rain” as those events that gave life meaning. That is when my understanding of the saying changed. I moved from expecting “rain” to make life harder, to expecting “rain” to make life more interesting. The first suggested life is something to endure - the second affirms my core belief that life is something to enjoy. Often, changing how I think requires getting soaked one too many times. Moral – If you are always getting soaked maybe it is time to rethink. |