SIMPLE TRUTHS â—½ ENCOURAGEMENT
Under Construction
by Marcy Lytle
I can’t tell you how many times we’ve been driving to our destination and my husband comments, “There’s construction everywhere,” as he sighs and slows down on the road.
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If we’re on a road trip and a highway is under construction, it often delays our plans and schedules, because traffic backs up on two lane roads for miles, and there’s no passing cars allowed or possible. And living in big state with lots of small towns, there are lots of places where construction takes place to re-pave or re-stripe or repair guardrails, etc.
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In our city, traffic is one of the worst in the country, and when construction cones and flashing lights are up ahead, we all moan! The exit for our house is closed off in the evenings at the current
moment, while highway workers labor at night to improve our highways. I feel sorry for them, but I feel sorrier for us as we have to reroute our way home…
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Now, the cones are on our street! The workers are out repairing man holes and sealing spots in the road so that our commute home is a safe and less bumpy one. For that, I’m grateful. But no one, I mean no one, likes cones lining their streets and work vehicles near their driveways. Not only is unsightly, but it’s annoying.
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My, what a spoiled bunch we are. And I’m talking about myself in that bunch!
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Think about what roads with no construction would be like! I can imagine huge potholes that tear up cars and even cause wrecks after weeks of rain and hot sun that damages the asphalt. Railings and signs that have been knocked down due to wrecks or wind would create chaos and provide no boundaries for safe driving. Eek! And our own streets would become avenues of ugliness instead of paved pretty paths on which to drive.
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And yet…we complain.
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Segway to my own life…which also seems like it’s always under construction. Is there ever an age where we arrive and the construction stops? I think not. I’m still learning and realizing that I have to slow down, reroute, and give thanks for the times when I’m made to stop, told to go a different way or just invited to a big slow down on life’s highway. While it may seem annoying, and downright show stopping, I need to give thanks for the repairs and pretties that result after the cones are moved and traffic ensues.
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Aren’t newly paved roads so pretty? Fresh stripes make me feel safe when I drive, especially when they were barely visible before the construction. Wider lanes help the traffic flow, and isn’t that what we all want?
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What we don’t want is the slow down and the inconvenience of going here and there with obstruction. We want smooth sailing every single day.
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I’m having guests next week and I’m hoping those cones on my street are gone. But if they’re not, then they’ll see them, maneuver around them, and still arrive at my home. And I’ll welcome them, and we’ll have a good time.
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Construction is necessary on the streets and in my mind, body and soul…always and forever…until that final day when perfection is complete. So I may as well see construction as sweet…and quit my sighing. Are you with me?