There is a
sophomore at my school who drag races and holds a track record at two different
race tracks. This student is rather
quiet, almost shy. Always smiles. This student is also a girl, named Carly. Honestly, when I found out, I was
shocked. I had never, not in a million
years, pictured her as a drag racer, and not because “she’s a girl.” Only because she just didn’t “seem to be the
type” whatever “the type” seems to be.
She told me she loves it and finds it exciting and can’t wait to get out
there this summer once again.
In 2012, we had
a senior, Devin, who was a speed skater, and he was good enough to compete in
South Korea. I have a picture of him on
my file cabinet. I’ve had other kids at
different schools who raced Moto Cross and dirt bikes, and some were more
successful than others. But they
competed and raced just the same, like Carly, because they love it and find it
exciting.
I never really
cared for NASCAR or motor racing in general, I guess mainly because I didn’t
have any contact with it. My dad wasn’t
interested in it, and neither were my brothers or sisters. But that being said, I am curious enough to
check out how Matt Kenseth did after each race because he’s from my home state
of Wisconsin.
The interesting
thing to me . . . the really fascinating thing to me . . . is that these men
and women travel at such a high rate of speed . . . seemingly fearlessly. And they do this in such close proximity to
each other. Side by side. Bumper to bumper. Fighting to take a lead into and out of
turns. Strategically taking a pit stop
for more fuel or a tire change. As I
said, interesting and fascinating.
In The Course Of
The Race there just might be an accident.
A wreck. Sometimes just one car,
sometimes several cars. It might be
caused by a slight turn of the wheel at the wrong time. It might be caused by another driver. In any case, a wreck occurs.
Happens in life,
too.
In The Course Of
The Race of life, we might be sailing along at top speed, circling the track,
braking a bit into a curve and speeding up out of the turn. We dodge that person, those people, pass them
and on we go.
And then just as
suddenly, In The Course Of The Race, there is a wreck. Sometimes the wreck is caused by someone else
and we get caught up in it. Other times,
we cause the wreck ourselves. And
sometimes, God forbid, we cause others to crash along with us.
Sometimes, In
The Course Of The Race, we veer off course.
Sometimes, we fail to take the pit stop when we should have taken
it. Sometimes we’re so blinded in the
pursuit, the goal, in winning, in seeking the checkered flag that perhaps we
aren’t as cautious as we should have been . . . should be.
In The Course Of
The Race, sometimes we’re so intent on our own lives, our own goal, that
without thinking, we run others into the wall, cause them to crash, or we burn
up our own engines to the point where we have to fall out of the race and can’t
compete.
And sometimes In
The Course Of The Race, we cause others to fall out of the race so they can’t
compete. Sometimes we place ourselves in
this position, and sometimes through no fault of our own, we find ourselves in
this position because of someone else’s lack of thought, carelessness, and ruthlessness.
The words “cut
throat” “ruthless” “in it for themselves” “without a thought for others” come
to mind and can be applied to us.
Sometimes we’re not even aware of our actions.
Perhaps it’s
important to remember to take a pit stop every so often. Change our tires. Fill ourselves up with fuel. Listen to our Crew Chief. Get some direction. And make sure there is enough rest and
relaxation in between the races to be effective. Then we can head back out onto the track and
continue with the race. Something to
think about . . .
Live Your Life,
and Make A Difference!