Human Pinball

One day in the spring of 2002, I had a very tedious day at work. I was shot, really worn out. I worked up Big Cottonwood Canyon in Salt Lake City and had to drive 40 minutes home. One section (on      I-80 West headed to North I-15) I needed to drive a narrow one lane road which curved and was surrounded by concrete barriers. I must have been a little distracted as I started to veer off the left side of the road and hit some gravel. I thought I could quickly regain control of my Ford Taurus but I was wrong.

My car and I soon became a human pinball. My car hit the left side of the concrete barriers, then hit the right side of the concrete barriers, then hit all four corners of my vehicle as I rotated and turned. When my car came to a stop, I soon realized that I was facing the wrong direction. Upcoming cars would not be able to see me until it was too late. I said a prayer and discovered that the only way out was a         three-point turn. I anxiously and quickly maneuvered and pulled over to a small space on the right-hand side.  As soon as I did this, several cars whizzed past me. If they had come a moment earlier, I wouldn’t be writing this blog now.

I thought about what I could learn from being a human pinball. You might be surprised. I already knew the obvious, that I’m supposed to be alive and that I have a purpose in this life. I was going through serious trials, as usual. But this was the lesson I learned. My trials are like dings in a car. Like my car, I may get dings in this life but I’m still alive and okay. It's just a ding. It can be fixed. I don’t need to sweat the small stuff. I may barely miss being taken out of this life but I’m going to make it. Perhaps my trials are really as small as pinballs in the grand scheme of things.

Strong Enough

Recently, I was corresponding with a dear friend who has more trials than anyone I know. I texted her:  “You must be very strong to face all you face. You may have not beaten a lion yet but you’re in there fighting him. In time, you will beat him. Then others will see how strong you are.” I like the image of fighting an unseen lion, very real to the person fighting it while oblivious to others. What are your unseen lions?  I started to write down some of my unseen lions and I found it to be quite depressing. So, I’d rather focus on triumphing over our unseen lions or foes.

Image: FreeDigitalPhotos.net

I came across a song called “Strong Enough” by Matthew West. He wrote an album based on people’s experiences. He related that a young lady had many trials. He told her that God doesn’t give us more than we’re strong enough to bear. Then, this young lady replied, “Then God must think I’m very strong.” I loved her attitude! The first line in the song, “Strong Enough” is “You must think I’m strong to give me what I’m going through.” Whatever you believe about God or the Universe, I believe that we are meant to succeed.  Sometimes it takes many years or decades to beat unseen lions but I know you can. Don’t give up hope.  You may not be super strong but you are “strong enough.”

Lessons with Toddlers and Soda

I took my toddler to a fast food restaurant recently. Every time we go there, she asks for a drink. And every time, I turn her down due to the price and since she never drinks much of the drink. Well, that day I said “yes.” I thought this would be relatively simple. I told her the choices of pink lemonade, fruit punch, sprite or root beer. She asked for pink lemonade. I filled her cup part-way. She tried it and said it was “too sour.” I poured it out. I asked her what she wanted. She said, ”lemonade.” I told her she had just tried it and said it was sour.

At this point, I noticed an older gentleman waiting to get his drink. I could imagine him thinking that in his generation, the Mom just gave the kid a drink and the kid drank it. I tried to move out of the gentleman’s way by moving to the side, but I never quite got out of his way.  My daughter was taste-testing and patience-testing for me, while the line quickly formed behind us. So I said, “How ‘bout fruit punch?” I filled the cup again and was rejected again. I mentioned root beer and sprite but she wanted pink lemonade. I quickly relayed she said it was “sour” before, but she was insistent as toddlers can be. Lesson 1: Reasoning with a young child rarely works.

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So, as an “understanding” mother, I poured the pink lemonade again.  My toddler rejected it yet again. But I wasn’t giving up. I offered to add sprite to the lemonade—which I did. She tried it and didn’t like it. I was beginning to feel guilty about all the soda I was wasting, so I poured the mixture into my own cup. “What do you want to drink?” “Fruit punch,” she said. “But you tried it and didn’t like it.” Anyone experiencing déjà vu? I poured the fruit punch yet again, bracing myself for her response. Lesson 2: No more toddlers choosing fountain drinks.

My daughter tried the fruit punch. Drum roll please…she liked it. I quickly filled her cup with fruit punch and got out of the long line.  We took our food and carefully selected drinks to a table and sat down. As she started to drink her drink, my daughter exclaimed “This is my best day ever!” Lesson 3: Let children make choices as it builds their self-esteem and it could just be their best day ever.