Traffic

Our daughter flew in from Charleston, South Carolina for the holiday weekend. Both Mindy and I were excited about having all our girls home, so the idea of driving to the Dayton airport to meet her 11:30pm arrival didn't bother us at all. Who would have imagined we'd spend 45 extra minutes waiting in traffic?

There wasn't an accident, just 3 narrowed lanes through construction on I-75 between Cincinnati and Dayton. It was the kind of slow-down you'd expect during the ride home from work. Bumper to bumper. Nothing but taillights as far as you could see. But this was after 11pm -- on a school night. Where were all of these people going? Did their mothers know they were out so late?

A combination of impatience and eagerness put me on edge, but there was nothing I could do... except sulk. Why were all these cars & trucks getting in MY way? This is MY road. Maybe if I inched closer to the car in front of me....

We eventually got to the airport by midnight. It was a late night, but we quickly forgot about the hassle once we hugged Kristin and our other girls started arriving. The weekend was a blast.

Last night, after dropping Kristin off at the same airport, it occurred to me. There are some important moments in life and then there are the ordinary, everyday occurrences. Both are required, but only one matters. The big mistake I make is confusing the two or letting those everyday occurrences distract me from what's important. Traffic happens.

Lots of us get stuck in traffic. We're headed so many places and doing so many things, but we're getting nowhere. We're focused on the clutter in our life rather than those people or events that really matter. We curse the other drivers who get in our way rather than let those moments pass, knowing there are bigger things to concentrate on.

The past few weeks my schedule has been packed full of meetings and deadlines. Important stuff, I suppose. I want to do my job well. I think what I'm doing helps people and honors God. But sometimes, even that becomes "traffic."

Sometimes I'm surprised at what the really good stuff -- the stuff that matters most -- ends up being. It's going to the Red's game with your 81-year-old dad. It's watching your daughter light up as she talks about her upcoming wedding. It's Skyline time with your girls. It's sitting around a fire, listening to your kids tell stories about the good, old days. It's watching your granddaughter giggle on her first swing. It's the whole family napping on the floor after a big feast. It's taking a snapshot with the entire family. It's seeing a tear in Mindy's eye when the house is empty again, but still feeling full and content. It's a great weekend together with the people you love the most.

I guess I'm back in traffic again. But it feels good to know I'm not alone and I'm headed somewhere.