Mel texted me “Life is tossing you a few lemons today 😊” after I postponed our exercise call. There was a flurry of phone and text activity this morning as I tried to ascertain when my car would be ready and find a ride to town to pick it up. Honeybadger was happy to take me on her way to radio, but then it appeared the car wouldn’t be ready. Next thing I know, the shop called and said “Ray’s on his way to pick you up.”
What? I didn’t want to ride twenty minutes in a closed car with a guy who works with people all day. I’d have to ask him to mask and that would be awkward. Why was he suddenly breaking protocol and delivering my car, and so soon? Would he be defensive about the problem that got it there? Could I stop him? No. I asked, and they said he wanted to come get me and was on his way. As Honeybadger pointed out, it was kind of him to deliver the car. I’m grateful for mindfulness practice, which allowed me to let go of these and other questions almost as soon as they arose, and surrender to the flow of what was happening.
He arrived and I invited him to look around the winter yarden. We stood outside and visited for awhile as Wren ran around, during which time he apologized for what happened and explained it was a trainee who had done the work. He was rather mortified. He said they had only ever lost one oil plug and that was more than twenty years ago, and it should never have happened. We agreed it was good fortune that he didn’t have to buy me a new engine. We laughed. In the course of conversation, I mentioned the COPD which makes me so protective about getting a respiratory virus. When we got to the car, I invited him to chauffeur me. Then I put on a KN95 mask and offered him a surgical mask. He so kindly said “Sure, no problem.”
(Aside: such a contrast to the last person I asked to wear a mask to be in close proximity with me in a closed space. She asked why, if she wasn’t sick, I wanted her to mask. She asked with curiosity for me to educate her, and finally agreed to mask, but it felt like a challenge nonetheless. And the mask was a loose cloth mask, nothing that offered meaningful protection. But I rolled with that also, however uncomfortably.)
We enjoyed a comfortable conversation on the drive, and exchanged warm hugs as he sent me on my way home. Naturally, being in town already, I had to stop for ice cream. When I got home and saw Mel’s message, you know what I replied: “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.” I’m grateful for my growing capacity to make lemonade out of the lemons that life hands me.
