Deadly Potholes: Drive with Caution

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  The sign said it all. Except, the potholes didn’t seem all that deadly. In fact, they did not meet up to their billing at all.

But perhaps, that was the point of the sign. Not to predict what truthfully lay ahead but rather, to get drivers to slow down, be cautious, pay attention to the road and its possibilities.

Imagine if life came with such a sign. 

Imagine if we were each born with a “Deadly Possibilities Ahead: Live With Caution<” switch.

Imagine if we never tried. To live outside our comfort zones. To experience new things. To venture new places. To meet new people.

Imagine.

The road of life can be filled with deadly potholes. It can also be filled with moments that take your breath away. With vistas that inspire your heart to leap for joy and throw all caution to the winds of fate as you throw yourself into living this moment passing by.

These are the moments worth living for. These are the moments worth adventuring towards. These breath-stealing moments of pure and utter delight where you are immersed in the wonder of being alive, right now.

These moments where every fibre in your body leans into the edge as you leap in freedom-drenched joy.

These moments where you scream out loud in sheer exhilaration and send your voice into the winds of time capturing every sound you make.

These moments where you dance fearlessly in the delight of being alive in this moment right now. At this place, right here. In this way, exactly as you are exactly as the world is around you, right now.

We walked along Wickinnish Beach yesterday. Ran through the waves. Splashed and kicked up frothy sun-speckled water. We laughed and spun about and sat quietly in the sun, woaking up the splendor of the moment, the time right now.

We did not walk with caution. We did not watch for potholes but instead, watched for whales spouting off the shore. Watched to see their giant bodies arc along the curling surface of the rolling seas.

We watched bald eagles sail upon the wind and dive down to pick up an octopus washed ashore as spluttering seagulls kept their distance and cawed in frustration.

We watched a horse and rider canter along the beach and smiled at the infrequent people we passed. We sat on the beach and listened to the surf’s rumbling roar and felt the calming rhythm of the waves wash over us.

We were only two of a handful of people on miles of beach, soaking up the sun, reveling in the salt kissed air, and savouring the beauty of it all.

It was a glorious day. A day to spend hours in the sun at the edge of the land where sky meets sea. Streaky wisps of clouds drifted high overhead while we soaked up every ounce of joy.

Life doesn’t come with warnings of potholes ahead. It comes with its invitation to live it, right now, and savour the  moment, right here.

I’m so grateful.

21 thoughts on “Deadly Potholes: Drive with Caution”

  3. I love this day that you portrayed with beautiful eloquence, Louise!! Yes…a warning for life…It makes me wonder about a lot of things. I am the big ‘warner’ where my son is concerned…and I can ‘hear’ him roll his eyes over the cell phone and think ‘really, Mom?’ So I have been trying really hard to be the one portraying the signs. Easier said than done! 🙂 Many blessings to you ❤

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  6. Yeah some days life seems to be a road full of not only potholes but a couple of large you could get lost in it holes, if we can see the hole and steer around it good but if you are like me the harder you try to miss said hole the more likely you are to end up lost in it……….when that happens you need to climb out dust yourself off and continue on your way

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  8. I’ve thought of this pothole metaphor a lot in my years. Not those exact terms, but I’ve decided there’s a reason that our brain/mind is unable to see the future (or the potholes ahead). Knowing the bad things (as well as the good) that are ahead of us could make us stop exploring and experiencing and trying out new things. NO, no looking ahead to potholes. Full steam ahead, instead. 🙂

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  9. Haha. this post made me laugh as three days ago I went for a drive on my own and ended up with a flat tyre at the back of beyond. Lucky for me a mother and her 16 year old son (also enjoying the back of beyond) came by after some time. I would never have been able to unbolt those wheel bolts on my own. Even more lucky for me was that it had not happened an hour before when I was fifteen kilometres down a dirt track out of mobile phone range. So the warning sign ‘potholes ahead” could have worked wonders for me!
    Anyway, the moral of the story is that I was touched by the human kindness of those two complete strangers who came into my life, down on their knees getting themselves dirty trying to find where the jack was supposed to go and getting me out of trouble. It is funny to say, that I NEEDED that flat tyre to show me that kind people do still exist, and I found two of them – out the back of beyond. 🙂

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