What a trip!

I printed out the directions from Google Maps. It said 11 hours, 32 minutes. So we left late in the morning with our trip planned out. One long stop for dinner to stretch our legs and a few short stops for lunch and potty breaks.

As we headed south down I-75, it seemed like things would never get better. According to the Weather Channel, things should have cleared up by the time I got to southern Ohio. Lima was snowy. Dayton? Snowy. Cincinnati. Still snowing and windy.

As the sun began to set I was hoping for improved conditions; but as we approached Lexington, Kentucky, I realized things weren't getting any better. The traffic slowed to a crawl. It seemed like every quarter of a mile there was another car in the ditch or some kind of accident. Collisions, fender-benders, and even a jack-knifed semi. We saw it all. And this was while my speedometer seldom passed "10."

Heading further south in Kentucky, I figured this madness will finally end. But we continued to experience patches of snow and slick roads. Even Georgia wasn't safe. Finally, at a little after 3:00 am, we pulled into the parking lot. My legs were stiff from spending so much time holding down the break pedal. My back was sore from over 15 hours of driving.

I don't really want to complain, because I know we are doing a lot better than the people we saw in ditches and those being taken away by an ambulance. Sure, we had to drive a little longer than we planned, but our car is still in one piece and we are all safe.

However, I was reminded of an important lesson. It doesn't matter how much we plan or prepare, life can take turns we never expect.

Just like my 16-hour journey from Ohio to Atlanta, there are times we need to slow down and be cautious, and other times we need to press forward with focus. How things go in this journey called life are often determined more by the choices we make in the midst of storms or good times than by the situations we might find ourselves in.

The next time you feel frustrated, angry, or irritated, don't just push down the accelerator and try to speed through it. Hold on to God, think before you act, and focus more on what you can do than on what is happening to you.

shine!
Jason