Life and Driving Analogy

Last week on Friday, I made a trip to the northern part of Tasmania. I wanted to escape from my laptop for two nights over Easter, meditate, and, of course, enjoy the ambient nature of Tasmania. It has been some moons since I cut a long drive out of town. I do fancy long drives; however, this would be the first time I drive such a distance. Driving in Australia is guided by one fundamental law, ‘keep left unless overtaking!’ Typical of a relatively new driver, I kept to my lane. Today of all days, I didn’t want trouble brewing on my back; peaceful life was my portion.

From my rear mirror, I would notice impatient drivers trailing me, seemingly bothered by my pace. I didn’t give a care to increasing my speed. My safety was my top priority. I would let them slow down until we reach the overtaking lane then I would keep left to let them overtake me. To my surprise, a few minutes after being overtaken, the cars would vanish out of my sight. Gradually, traffic would build up behind my car until the next overtaking lane. This trend repeated several times until I arrived at my destination.

I wasn’t bothered when other motorists flaunted their speeding prowess to overtake me. I made my safety a priority and only kept to the speed I would manage. Besides, I had started my trip early enough to give me enough time to arrive at my destination at the set time. I equally wanted to have several stops and enjoy the breathtaking views. Seemingly, my goals were different from those of other motorists.  As I approached Campbell town, ahead was a slow-moving van which I decided to overtake. I was elated to have overtaken a slow motorist. My happiness was, however, short-lived. The driver pulled over to the first restaurant. Probably they wanted to buy coffee, or they had arrived at their final destination. I drove on needless, humming to my favourite tune – like a Prayer by Madonna.

After checking in at Quality Hotel Colonial in Launceston, I started reflecting on my journey. I was proud for making a successful long trip for the first time. My journey kept me reminiscing on how we stress so much in our life. For instance, my overtaking the van driver meant nothing to him. In life, how many times have I tried to compete with people running their race? The trip gave me three precious lessons that I will hold dear to my heart.

Staying on the left lane was vital because I wasn’t bothered by what other drivers were doing at my back. They had a chance to overtake me if they needed to. Many drivers ended up overtaking me, but the fact remains that I achieved my goal of reaching my final destination. No matter how long it takes, staying focused will finally earn you the trophy in life. The word of God has also promised us that time and chance happens to all. The race is not to the swift or the battle to the strong, nor does food come to the wise or wealth to the brilliant or favour to the learned.

Moreover, don’t hate it when the traffic slows or when the red light shows up. I took that chance to check my mirrors, adjust my seat and refresh my playlist. This is equally true with life in general. At times, we need to rest even for a few seconds to boost our productivity. Spreading yourself too thin can have you swimming in avoidable failures. Speed kills. It is, therefore, easier to control a car at a lower speed. Never rush in life; good people end up with good people.

Lastly, although I was always on the left lane, I would change to the right lane to overtake slow-moving cars or roadblocks. It is dangerous to stay in a lane that leads you to no end. If you see that the lane you’re on is going nowhere, shift to the one that best fits your preferable path. Always know when to make the right decisions in life. Changing lane doesn’t mean you won’t reach home. After all, you can move back to the left lane after overtaking the slow car to give the first moving cars a chance to keep up to their speed. Such is life, be your unapologetic self. Run your race with your goals in check. Trust me. You don’t want to be a headless chicken!

Photo by Griffin Wooldridge on Unsplash