No One Has Complained

Well, another new day rears its ugly head.

Okay, it is a beautiful morning that is filled with possibilities. We have a little bit of everything today, birds singing, fluffy clouds wafting across the pale blue sky, quickly disappearing night dew and of course the asshole revving his engine at 7:00 AM.

I don’t mind it because I am up already and it gives me something to feel superior about to start the day. I imagine that I would have a somewhat different opinion if my kids were sleeping, I was sleeping or I happened to be a night worker just trying to sleep. Perhaps that is the challenge God has set for this small part of the universe. It isn’t a really big challenge, or important in any way, but I believe that those of us in this tiny corner of the universe are up to it. Personally, I just moved to the other side of the house and closed the windows. Problem solved God!

Not all of the trials and tribulations we face each and every day need to be life changing and difficult. I like the easy ones myself because I am not very good at the big challenges. I can handle things like should I have coffee or tea? Cherrios or oatmeal? Shorts or jeans, and to go with that, boxers or briefs. Should I water the garden now or after Buster and I go for a walk? Read or watch that show I recorded last night? I can handle all of those little life decisions.

There is no reason that when it comes to judgement day we can’t be judged on how we handled the day to day decisions. I can see Saint Peter with his book at the Pearly Gates running his gnarled finger down a long list and telling me “You handled the breakfast problems very well for the most part. There was the Coco Puffs incident of 1978, but since then your choices have been excellent. There is no official decision on the boxers vs. briefs, so it boils down to personal preference until the big guy gives us the 411. Come on in, everything else is pretty good.”

“Wait a minute!” I say, looking up in disbelief, “What about how I treated people that needed my help? Did I make an impact for the good while I was here? Did I, as a being improve over the years? Would I like me if I were a stranger meeting me for the first time?”

“I don’t mean to tell you your job Peter but the first things I did well at aren’t significant at all, it is the way we walked this earth that is important.”

Peter smiled and held the gate open. “You wouldn’t have been able to get past the gate if you didn’t know what was important in life. The test isn’t if we think you did well, you have to know that you did well. A successful life is measured against itself. There is one guy that believes a successful life is revving his engine constantly. None of us understand it, but he does appear to be happy and so far, no one has complained.”