THE DEMISE OF OUR GREAT PLANS

     Sometimes in life we have great vision and we feel certain that we know exactly what we have to do and how perfectly our idea will work out. Like the solution to a riddle, we think of just the thing, and often, we spend money to purchase some kind of instant momentum. Maybe we buy a Nordic Track to get us in shape, or an ab coaster to assure ourselves of the six-pack belly we are sure can be ours; or maybe it's a super-flashy pair of cowboy boots, or The Story of Civilization by Will and Ariel Durant which we commit to read so that we will be exceptionally educated on historical matters.
     We start with the best of intentions and often great gusto, but so many of our wonderful ideas fall flat in the end. Our lives are littered with abandoned exercise equipment, and unread books, and clothes that we have never worn. Perhaps we would do better with a little more waiting and seeing and a little less impulsive knowing. Life has a way of rapidly changing gears and directions, and though some changes and new habits do stick, there are so many more that do not.
     Out of sheer eagerness, we tend to commit before we know what we're committing to, or whether it even suits us. People get married to each other in just this way, and accept jobs, and agree to all kinds of insanity. We want to arrive before we actually arrive hoping for some kind of insured security, which is silly, perhaps, but frequent and common behavior nonetheless. We would rather force an outcome than agree to travel the road for a little bit and see how it feels.

 I stop making impulsive decisions that affect my life and my wallet. I am willing to pause before leaping.