The Peak of Inspiration

I was taught a very simple lesson today.  And it was taught me in a very simple way. 

Circumstances compelled me to stop at our local Dairy Queen for lunch.  I was going to keep my order as small and cheap as possible.  The plan when I walked through the door was to just get a chicken salad to go.  But at the counter a voice told me to offset the salad with a small desert.  It wasn’t a loud voice, but it seemed like it understood my needs to a reasonable degree.  And as the salad didn’t have any dairy products that I knew of, I thought the blizzard may balance things out quite nicely. 

I took my meal and parked under a shade tree at a nearby park.  Ate the salad and got ready to hit the road again.  I was traversing between jobs and thought that the ice cream could just as well be consumed while driving.  But then something caught my eye.  You’ve probably all seen the same thing I did, and I wonder how it affects you. 

I noticed how the ice cream was beginning to melt around the inside edge of the cup.  How it was creeping up toward the brim and threatening to run over the side.  That’s when a simple truth wrapped itself around my mind.  Or perhaps it was that same voice I had heard earlier, the one that had convinced me to splurge on this treat.  This time, it spoke 4 short words.  It said, “Now is the time”.  Ice cream doesn’t wait forever.  It’s meant to be enjoyed when it’s in front of you.  It won’t sit in the console or on the counter and wait for those 3 minutes of the day when you have absolutely nothing to do.  It melts.  It disappears.  Literally turns into a puddle and becomes a mess.  And so, I did what that voice told me to do.  I kept the engine off, stayed under that tree, and enjoyed every bite.

I’ve noticed how I tend to miss opportunities.  Many times thinking they’ll be there next time I come around.  I miss them because “right now” is not a good time.  I reason that the best time would be this evening, or tomorrow, or next Saturday.  And then, when I arrive at the “best time”, the opportunity has melted, drained out and is no longer what I wished it was.  I go through life thinking I’ll have a hundred chances to do this thing, have lunch with a friend, buy my wife a random gift, build a lego truck with my 5 yr. old, hike the mountain, fix the faucet, sit on the porch and just… sit. 

But the fact is, these opportunities are just ice cream.  They may not wait for you.  They may just disappear.  The moment they present themselves, the countdown starts.  You’ll need to make a choice.  Will I risk losing this chance, this blessing?

Or can I see the opportunity for what it is.  A treasure that is meant for right now.  A present tailor made for me, in this place, at this time.  Will I choose to forget the pressure of the day and the road ahead of me, and stay parked in the shade a little longer, and treat myself to the gift of opportunity that is in front of me.

I’m not old, but I’m older than I was.  And I think I’m old enough to start to understand the regrets some have of not taking the time, of being too busy, of wasting chances, of missed opportunities.  

There may be an opportunity in front of you right now.  It may not be there for long.  It’s meant to be enjoyed.  Its purpose is to fill you.  To bring you satisfaction.  To leave you better than you were before. 

The work ahead of you can wait.  The ice cream can’t.  Make the choice that makes a difference.  You won’t regret it.