Monday, May 10, 2010

Switching Gears

A few years ago, I got a wild hair and bought a Jeep Wrangler. And quite honestly, I truly loved that car. I loved everything about it ... but I especially loved driving it on a warm day with the top down. There simply is no feeling like buzzing down the highway in a Wrangler with the wind blowing in my hair, sun beating down on my face, looking absolutely beyond cool behind the wheel. And yes, a gray-haired woman can most definitely look cool ... at least she can when she is driving a Jeep Wrangler.

Last October, my oldest son convinced me to trade in my beloved Wrangler for a Jeep Patriot. He cited all of the legitimate reasons ... safety, gas mileage, convenience, I was getting too old to drive a Wrangler ... and I listened to him. And other than the comfort and the savings in dollars on gas when I travel, I have missed my Wrangler almost every day since I made the switch.

As I was driving home today in a torrential downpour, however, I must confess that I felt safer in my Patriot than I did driving my Wrangler in the same type of weather conditions. I always felt every puff of wind in the Wrangler, and being a person who is terrified of lightning, I worried during stormy weather that a bolt would come through the soft top and fry me to a crisp as I drove. I don't know if that has ever happened to anyone, but I worried about it nonetheless.

Over the last months, I've experienced some big life changes ... physical, emotional and spiritual. I've come to realize that the way I handle change says a lot about who I am as a person. While I would like to say that I always accept the unexpected things that come my way with grace and patience, that often isn't the case. Sometimes, I ... well, sometimes I ... well, I just freak out and have a meltdown when my life changes or shifts. And then there are times when I simply glide through the changes, embracing and accepting them with ease.

When God switches the gears in my life, it can sometimes bring the deepest, most unanticipated blessings. My prayer? That I would go along for the ride and trust Him to do the shifting ... bring on the changes, Lord, bring 'em on.






1 comment:

allie :^) said...

my sentiments exactly. i absolutely shudder / cringe when i think of how i have RE-acted to life changing circumstances. i feel i always get there in the end, i always climb out of the hole i seem to throw myself into at first, but someday...wouldn't it be nice not to have to climb out just for once? to just leap over it, laughing, knowing that i'm tough enough, or soft enough, or both or whatever i need to be to navigate this new path set before me??? LOVE THESE POSTS. pls keep writing and sending them my way. :)