When Plans And Monkey Wrenches Collide

I once met (on a road trip with a good friend) someone that had a daily to do list of 50 to 100 items. This is not the pathway to going with the flow. As you know by now life doesn’t just take a bow and wait for you to proceed with your plans. It throws monkey wrenches into the whole mix. Some days the plans and the wrenches comes together positively.


I took a long bike ride today. I had no idea that the winds were supposed to be gusting up to thirty miles per hour. This was foolish of me since I did know that the temperature was going to cool by ten degrees and that never happens here unless accompanied by wind. Of course life never happens here unless accompanied by wind. I had no time frame to return home by so the wind and the hills bothered me less. I also had two chance encounters; one with a fellow rider that pulled alongside to chat, the other with a family that asked where I was headed. The dad of the family shared a bit about cycling in his youth and some stupid things he did. It was an enjoyable little meeting that wouldn’t have taken place if the hills—and the wind---hadn’t slowed me way down.

We have a girl in high school. This means extracurricular activities. Once in a while those activities conflict with my plans. Tonight we pulled into the church parking lot as her bus was returning to town after a swim meet. The wife dropped me at church then picked up the daughter. Perhaps it was the expectation that I’d miss church but it was quite enjoyable being there.

There is a benefit of keeping a short list of things that have to be accomplished each day. I’m getting better at committing to the important and allowing margin for the disruptions. Sometimes the conversion of the two is a good thing.