Fate
“Fate is
like a strange, unpopular restaurant filled with odd little waiters
who bring you things you never asked for and don't always like.”
Lemony
Snicket
Whatever you believe
about fate, stuff happens almost every day that proves we aren't not
in control of much. At least is does in my life. Some people agree
with William Ernest Henley that “I am the master of my fate: I
am the captain of my soul.” Somehow, I have not found that to
be true. Even Ralph Waldo Emerson had a more confident attitude about
fate than I do. He said, “Once you make a decision, the universe
conspires to make it happen.” What I have found, instead, is
that life has a mind of its own. I can be planning away,
engrossed in my own thoughts and designs, and the minute I feel in
control, some wicked angel comes flying in and throws a wrench into
the works. Allen Saunders framed it this way, “Life is what
happens to us while we are making other plans.”
Basket ball legend, Kobe
Bryant, his daughter, Gianna, and seven other living beings were
simply going to a basket ball game. They had commitments,;they were
organized. They had life-plans. They had made decisions that the
universe surely knew about. Gianna, at thirteen, was already being
recruited by colleges for her incredible skills on the court. She
hoped to play for University of Connecticut. Now the lives of so many
people—their families, their friends, their fans, their teammates,
everyone in this country—are impacted by their untimely deaths. All
of the people on board that helicopter had husbands or wives,
children, parents, sisters and brothers, whose lives have now been
changed forever. Their fate was not of their choosing. However, what
they do with this terrible grief will likely determine much of the
rest of their lives.
As much as we'd like to
believe that we are in control of our lives, the truth is, we are
not. Life happens on its own schedule, and our job is to adapt; to
grow into beings who can roll with the vicissitudes that fate dishes
up. The lesson in all this, if there is one, is to get up everyday
with hope and gratitude. Do your very best to appreciate the life you
have, and ask for God's grace to guide your way.
Godspeed to all who lost
their lives on that helicopter. I pray for comfort for all who loved
them.
In the Spirit,
Jane
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