MY FAVORITE THING ABOUT “THE UNPLANNED”
by Eric Munter
Yesterday, the unplanned happened. I biked over to a friend’s house where I helped shutter and prepare for South Florida’s annual (and dreaded) hurricane season. As I planned to bike back to my place, my bike decided to throw a wrench into my agenda by having a tire go flat and a brake – uh, break.
Fortunately, I live less than five miles from my friend’s place and (not to toot my own horn here, but) I’ve run a marathon. So making the trek back home wasn’t the biggest of concerns.
My initial thought centered on the amount of time that was going to be “wasted” by this unplanned diversion. I was planning on getting back home at a reasonable hour to get some work done, do a light workout and then settle in for game 5 of the Stanley Cup Finals (yes, I managed to squeeze in my obligatory hockey reference). But sometimes when you make plans in life, life decides to flex its sense of humor muscles and override them.
When this happens, you just have to roll with the punches and make the best of the situation. I ended up having a WONDERFUL walk home. I got to spend nearly two hours with myself outdoors, breathing fresh air, feeling the sun beaming down – and it was great! It was just me and my thoughts. I sometimes forget how great it is having those prolonged, quiet moments alone with yourself where you let your mind go wild.
My “unplanned” walk turned into a very positive and energizing experience that has me pumped up, even a full day later. Sometimes when things don’t go the way you expect, you end up with a gifted experience – just so long as you look at things with a positive attitude and make the best of whatever situation you find yourself in.
JUN