Up and Running
I was running to my car outside the other day, and I planted my left foot to pivot. That foot was on ice, and completely slid out from under me. One moment I was up and running, and you know the way your brain leaves out the details when something painful happens quickly? The next nanosecond I was down on the ground. I laid there for a little while, thankful I had tugged my left leather & wool mitten on the hand that gave the ground a ringing SLAAAP. Up and running, down and not running.
I’m fine, my hand is fine, and actually I don’t share such an anecdote to provide a slapstick image of limited entertainment. Instead, I think it’s a metaphor for life. Sometimes, you get that “maybe not such a good idea” thought in your head, so you half-expect something unforeseen and equilibrium-demolishing is going to happen. Many other times, you just have no idea anything is going to happen; a human’s prescience is limited not only by available knowledge but also by limited scope of focus.
Our prognostications of future events, then, is poor. So, we do our best to enjoy moments when we are up and running, because there will be times when suddenly we are down and not.