“Moving Too Fast”

Last week, I was excited about spending time with my friend Barbara at the Quebe Sisters concert. Unfortunately, we missed the show because I was moving too fast. I was rushing to be on time, thinking about the dreadful weather, thinking about the dinner I missed, wondering if I should leave Blue on the patio, etc. I was moving too fast mentally and physically. Barbara was such a good friend to notice how distressed I was when I arrived to pick her up. I reluctantly told her that I had left home with my cellphone on top of my car and lost it somewhere on Hwy 79. She insisted that we turn around and head back to Olney so I could find my phone. I was both relieved and sad about forcing her to miss the concert, too. I had to take her advice because everything was on that phone—passwords, interview recordings, articles, EVERYTHING. Because I don’t trust “the cloud,” I had no choice but to keep searching.

With another failed attempt, I called the police for help. Yes, I did that. I’m giving a shoutout to officer Miranda for using her big spotlight to search for the phone while I drove behind her. Guess what? We didn’t find the phone. I refused to give up and returned to the dark highway alone. That’s when I met Tom—a lovely man who helped me look for my phone. Although we failed again, I did not feel hopeless. Almost in tears, I returned home to regroup.

After regrouping, I thought GOOGLE. Yes, Google locater will tell me where my phone is. Unfortunately, I did not have my Google password because it was on my phone— the phone on Hwy 79. After a few workarounds, I accessed Google only to discover that I turned off my location history. I angrily turned it back on via the laptop computer and stepped away, thinking it was a lost cause and hope was gone. Hope put on its hat and coat and left my body and spirit. Later that night, something urged me to check the computer, and I could hear angels singing because Google had located my phone. Unfortunately, I had only 11 percent battery remaining. I had to get there quickly. It took a while for me to find the phone in the pouring rain, but we were once again reunited.

There is a lesson in all our experiences, whether big or small. I learned two things that night. The first was that my experience was a metaphor for the tragedies we face in life. It doesn’t matter how dire our circumstances are; God is with us through every storm and every dark moment in life. Therefore, we must not give up, and we must hold on to our faith. God was the one pushing me to keep going just as He does when things become difficult in life. The second thing I learned was to slow down and be present in every moment.

Oh yeah, I learned one more thing—to trust “the cloud” with my data.