My lifestyle has changed. I'm always in a hurry. In fact just a few months prior to the fine, I was pulled over but was given a warning. The only other time I got a ticket was when I was in my early twenties.
What was happening to me? I needed to make changes--and fast. There I go again, fast.
I thought about it for days. Why was this happening? What could I do to prevent this?
Slow down? Nah. I'll get a radar detector!
Wow! I never had one before. Now I'll be able to continue this breakneck speed. (Bad choice of words.) They'll never catch me.
"A radar detector? Why did you get that, Dad?"
OK. You explain it to your child. "I got it so I could break the law and go too fast while under pressure and getting nowhere fast, son."
I stumbled with my words. I'm a professional speaker. I could not rightfully explain why I bought a radar detector. Every reason I had was wrong.
I held on to it for about a week. I told my wife about my conversation with Evan. The next day I returned it. But from stupidity comes virtue. I had the greatest lesson to share with my son. I told him just yesterday that I returned it. "Why?" he asked. "Because of you, Evan. I realized that the only reason I bought one was so that I could break the law. What kind of lesson was I teaching you?"
God, I was proud of myself.
As my 83-year-old friend Violet says..."Hurry slowly." "That which grows slowly, endures."
I grew up that day. But in a hurry.