Thankfully, I have enjoyed many years of mostly uneventful hours in my car. Oh, there have been the occasional heart-stopping moments when another driver whizzed through a red light in front of me. Or someone came to a screeching halt in my rear view mirror.
I used to mumble about those “other guys” from time to time. Not so much anymore. Funny thing. As I age, I realize that regardless of who the “other guy” is, whether on the highway are anyplace else, we have a lot more in common than not.
Nonetheless, what really gets on my nerves are the speeders and tailgaters. And then there are the incessant lane-changers. You know, the kind you see dart in and out and switch from one lane to another as they approach from who knows where. They have one goal—to whiz by you and get through the next intersection. Yep, we all know what happens then. We all arrive at the red light at the same time. No more places to go. Stuck. Until the light turns green. Mumble grumble for sure.
With all that in mind, I am particularly careful to allow plenty of time to get to appointments. [Just ask my family.] The time of day, the traffic, the route, even the weather can all be factors in whether or not I will encounter delays. Now that you know how I feel and my track record, you may have seen this one coming from a mile off.
On my way to a recent appointment I encountered a veritable panoply of slow-downs. Where did all these cars come from? When did they start that construction project? Will it ever stop raining?
I darted a bit. Just a little. Well, maybe a few times. Around one vehicle. Sloshed passed yet another. Switched from one lane to the other. The good news is I hadn’t gotten too far into the let’s-try-to-get-through-the-next-light dash and splash when I actually laughed at loud.
In a voice that surely must have been uttered from a mystery passenger I heard myself mumble, “I am one of those.”
Oh, how easy it is for us to believe we are different from everyone else. We don’t do or say the things others do. We don’t make the [unhealthy] life choices “they” do. We don’t vote the way they do, shop where they shop, buy what they buy, view the same news programs or relax with the same kind of music.
While all that may be true and to a certain degree a credit to our unique personal perspectives, the reality is this: the moment we rush to say “I’m not like them”, we will find ourselves, sooner or later, in circumstances where we are uncomfortably alike.
The “I’m not one of those” syndrome is part of our complicated human nature. Seems we have a deep need—until we realize the folly of it all—to separate ourselves from the behaviors of others. Such thinking usually means we see ourselves as better in some way. And that is not healthy for either of us.
It’s not wise to run red lights. Or tailgate. Or engage in a dangerous version of almost-bumper cars. Definitely something God deemed worthy enough of my attention to gently remind me not to get in a hurry, especially when my actions could impact the safety and well-being of others.
