Late

I had an early flight out this week, which meant an extra early wake-up time. I have enough travel anxiety that I build significant amounts of time into my plan. I also set two alarms, 20 minutes apart. I typically wake up 30 minutes before the first one even goes off.

This week was different. My “you better be on the road” alarm went off. I, in fact, was not on the road. I slept peacefully—straight through both of the earlier alarms. I showered, dressed, took my meds, loaded the car, and hit the road in about 15 minutes. I believe it to be a record.

I was traveling on a weekend day and early in the morning, so traffic was light. I made tremendous time, likely another record. I got to my terminal at the airport and dove into the parking garage. The terminals are kind of the same, but just enough different. I watched diligently for travelers, other cars, and an empty spot.

I moved a bit too swiftly. I sharply cut a corner. A tall concrete curb was a cheese grater against my wheel. Ground it up real good. I was disgusted. I just recently had a close encounter with a curb, but did not learn my lesson. That lesson revisited me.

I ran inside to the security line. It was incredibly long. I’d slept through all of my time buffer. I got lucky and managed to make the flight just minutes before boarding.

Highways often have bumps on the outside lines. They rumble the car. The jolt to the steering wheel is feedback. I need this feedback. Sometimes I stray a little far from my path. Sometimes I cut the corners too close. Sometimes in my haste, I make things worse.

Am I listening for feedback? Do I retain previous feedback to apply when a warning isn’t immediately present? When things get rough, will I slow down to avoid making it worse?

Be curious, be kind, be whole, do good things.