Is it assumption or is it that things and people aren’t always what they appear?
- I go to the doctor for some kind of bug bite. The verdict? Not a bug bite. What? Hives? It felt like a bug bite. Who would know?
- I go to my mechanic for a common part, thinking nothing of it. It’s routine as usual and best price in town. Twenty minutes later…who are all these people? Why does this place look different? Are there new owners? Yup! No sign. No notice. No welcome sign. Hmm. Oh…and the rates? A $40/hr increase. Glad I asked…before and not after.
- I hired a young man to do some work for me. Highly energetic and positive, he was a real go-getter. Similarly, six years later, my employer hired a young lady who was also super energetic, positive and a real go-getter. Was this a problem? Yes. Their high energy was fueled and created by cocaine. Who would know? Their energy didn’t extend to follow-through and came with a host of other issues due to this addiction. Since I am a high energy person myself and a morning person, it appeared to me that these were like-minded individuals. Not so!
- What a great deal! This is a fabulous price for this flight! Then you get the total amount due. Whoa! What’s going on? Oh! It’s the add-on fees; a security-charge, airport improvement fee, navigational and air traffic charge, sales and fuel taxes – and extra baggage fees on top of it all if I have more than a carry-on. Right!
- The beautiful shrub on the front lawn is dying. We’ve had lots of rain and sunshine. The gardener prunes and cuts off all the dead stuff. Oh! There’s a four inch barrier of accumulated dead leaves, pine needles and debris around the bottom. It hasn’t got any of the water in spite of all the rain we’ve had. Who would know?
- A friend goes to a fabulous restaurant she’s loves. Great food. Great service. She goes home and is promptly sick for the next 24 hours with food poisoning. It looked good and tasted wonderful. Who would know?
- Then there are the endless stories of the most amazing and beautiful people. Genuine, caring, perhaps well-spoken and successful…and one day you hear the rest of their story. Abuse, abandonment, addiction, poverty, trauma or some life-threatening disease. Certainly, not how it would appear at this point.
I stop and question. Is It assumption? Is it more about what we don’t see, hear and know? Is it that things and people often appear different than what they are due to hidden aspects, the fine print or other details? Things and people are often not what they appear, for better or worse.
There are times when there are signs.
- I never saw any signs of bugs, and I couldn’t seem to get rid of the bites. No one else I knew seemed to be experiencing these bites. Something isn’t adding up.
- The staff and simplicity at the mechanics was different in spite of no literal signs or notices. Why these changes? There was a bigger change behind the smaller changes I discovered in asking.
- The flight price was “unbelievably” good. True! Time to check the fine print!
- Something was clearly wrong with the shrub for some time…maybe time to make a phone call to a nursery or landscaper before it’s totally dead and discover it only needed water.
- In the case of the food poisoning and other incidents or accidents, there are times when there is no indication by the human eye or ear that something is off or about to happen. However, inside we may have an uneasiness, a hesitancy, a nagging or lightning quick thought of something, or sense to do or not do something. We may have a thought to take a different route or make a change in plans. In some cases it can be a recognition of “That’s strange. Something seems weird, or a bit off.”
These experiences seem to be increasing or else I am having enough of them that I am developing a greater awareness, insight and quicker alertness. It’s far less stressful when we realize that it’s just another one of those times when things aren’t always what they seem. The question of the day would be What’s the rest of the story? or What else do I need to know, be aware of or pay attention to? Good question! That question can help clue us in to truth and answers that can save us a lot of time, trouble and even money down the road!