Recalled
My vehicle is in the shop. I thought it was a simple recall notice that could easily be fixed, but a week and a half later, it’s still in the shop. I am fine with that. I don’t have some strange attachment with my vehicle, counting down the days until I get it back. It’s just a vehicle. There are so many things in life that we think if they were stolen or destroyed or lost, we would have a period of mourning for that treasured sweater or nick-knack.
But is that a reasonable attachment? Is placing some value on a material possession crazy or perfectly sane?
The first time I bought a new car, that night I got a scratch in it. I had searched for two years for a vehicle and I got a scratch on my first big purchase. I didn’t get sick. I wasn’t angry. I didn’t cry. I just chalked it off and moved on.
I recently was talking to a friend who said he knew someone that would literally dent his newly purchased car so he wouldn’t worry about getting the first scratch. Now, I’m not going to go to that extreme, but I understand the logic.
We place so much value on material possessions, flashy vacations, size of a wallet or square footage of a home. But in the grand scheme of things, does any of that matter? On your deathbed are you going to ask someone to tell you what the balance is in your IRA? No.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m a CPA who likes to plan and prepare for the future, but when your preparing causes you to miss out on your life you’re living now…well, you need a recall as well.
You need a recall to re-evaluate your life and what’s really important to you. If money is more important to you than relationships, well, go make your money. But don’t be annoyed when there is no one around you in the end.
Funny, this coming from a single man, but there are more types of relationships than a married one. People who know me, know I’m not one to hoard all my blessings to myself. Just because God poured blessings onto me, doesn’t mean I’m supposed to enjoy it all. Many times we are to pour out to others what has been poured into us.
It could be money, or in life lessons, a cup of wisdom to a younger generation, a bucket of time to someone needing a helping hand, a well of love and mercy to the sometimes unloveable.
Yes, life is full of recalls. And for good reasons. Sometimes the recalls will help us in the future. To correct a problem. To mend a tattered relationship. To cause us to slow down and remember what really matters in life.
Lost jobs can be hard, but if you look at it like it’s a life recall, then you will know it’s going to be okay. Something better will come along.
Life is all about perspective.
Yes, life is full of recalls. Sometimes it’s a wake up call we desperately need to have.
Funny how a recall can wake you up to so many problems you didn’t know you had. But the solutions are always available. It may take time, but nothing is too far out of reach. Ever.
Peace
