I
spend a lot of time on the road and I have come to depend upon certain things
such as the "eye-in-the-sky" traffic reports, and simple things such
as road signs. When you spend as
much time as I do on the road, you also develop skepticism when it comes to
certain signs. But, on a recent
cold and misty Thursday morning, my skepticism for one such sign was put to rest
forever.
I
drove to work alone this morning as my usual commuting partner, Lisa, was busy taking
care of some last minute plans for her wedding.
The morning started off as it does on most days.
I stopped for coffee and the papers and hit the road at the ungodly hour
of 5:45 AM.
Without
Lisa I didn't have the
normal morning conversation that breaks up the monotony of a 70 mile drive. So, I followed the banter of the morning-drive jocks and the
reports from the traffic copters as they circled the sky and the radio dial.
I didn't follow too closely, though, as my thoughts focused on the many problems of the day
that all competed for attention within the canyons of my mind.
Every
so often we all get caught up with events in our lives that take up more hours
than the day has to give. This Thursday
morning found me in the middle of such a time as the problems of the day
queued up and waited for my fast moving attention span to grant them a brief
burst of time.
The
tasks at work already reached rush hour stage on the Central Artery, and
reconstruction hadn't even started yet! Friends
and family had my answering machine on overtime and fast approaching electronic
burn-out. Editors were looking
for stories I promised them, but, as the alarm clock for my writing career went off, I hit the snooze button and rolled over for a few more winks. At home dishes filled the the sink , the cupboards and fridge
echoed with loneliness, and the place looked more and more like a Dominos pizza box recycling
plant. I was a Mess!
Then
I saw it. The same sign I have seen at least once for every mile I have
ever driven. Each time I saw this
sign it lied to me. I didn't expect
this time to be any different. For
the very first time in my life the sign told the truth!
The
misty rain stopped, and, for a brief moment the sun showed its face.
The lights on the rear of the cars turned red as everyone slowed down to
get a quick glimpse of the action on the side of the road.
And then there -- right there!! - a deer was crossing; or more accurately, trying to
cross. The expressionless faces of
my fellow highway - rats turned to smiles.
Suddenly the old cliché was true, yesterday is a memory, tomorrow only a
promise. This moment is all that
mattered. The world took on a new perspective and I started to smile.
I
decided to leave work on time tonight.
On the way home I would stop at the supermarket and cancel my
blanket order with Dominos. That bottle of wine I
saved had found its moment. It would have its cork popped tonight as I make Ma Bell happy
as I give my answering
machine the night off and call some friends.
I was going to revel over the fact that after all the time and after all
the miles I had spent on the highway, I had just seen my very first deer
crossing on the side of the highway.
Tomorrow
is Friday. I just may finish that
bottle of wine and take a three-day weekend. Deer Me! I deserve it!
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