Monday, July 19, 2010

Thoughts in the Key of Life

When I was running today, something shiny caught my eye. After I ran past it in Robert Dashel Parr speed (not!), I thought, “Hey, I should really pick that up, right, Melissa?” I turned around, ran back, and I scooped the side-of-the-road trophy up in my hand.

It was a key on a key chain that was on a blue cord. I ran off with it tightly gripped in my left hand and my iPod tightly gripped in my right hand. After I picked it up, I had flashbacks to a blog I had written a few months ago.

I asked myself why I needed to pick it up. Myself said, “It was bright. It was shiny. And, it might unlock a locker at bus terminal which was filled with…www.zappos.com gift certificates!” Yes, I knew I was kidding myself, but it was key on the side of the road; it already had a story, and it was a story that I knew I would tell just about now.

The key wasn’t to a house; it said “Master” on it. I knew it was to a padlock. “The interesting thing about it,” said CSI Jean, “was that it had a personalized key chain.”



On the key chain was a proverb. It said:

The wise person makes learning a joy. Proverbs 15:2

I liked that, because so far, my last year had been about learning, and it had been a joy.

As I ran, I thought, “I just picked up some key from the side of the road.”
Then I said, “It’s cool. So what?”
I then said, “It’s dirty. It has no value.”
I responded, “I like it. It has no value, but it means something to me.”

As I go on in life, I realize that it’s good to pick up things along the way. It’s not good to pick up 18 cats, 25 boxes of magazines, or an Edsel; however, it’s good to find things and keep them, especially if they mean something to you. It’s so important to keep an open heart and an open mind.

What did the key mean to me? I didn't know. It was shiny, bright, and so very new to me.

A key is good. A key unlocks doors, safety deposit boxes, and, today, a key unlocked the software I needed at work. As I thought about it on my run, this key unlocked many things I had learned this last year.

o Never buy real estate with relatives.

o It’s better to be alone than to be with the wrong someone.

o Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference.

o Just because you have family doesn’t mean that friends can’t be even better to you than your own family. Mentioning my wild and crazy kids on Nantucket this past weekend.

o Never underestimate the power of a 7-year-old to always make you see life from a totally new perspective.

o Never chastise the 17-year-old who gets three Cs on his report card but rocks his SATs and his AP exams; we all do it differently, and 3 Cs don’t make or break a life.

There were many other things, but they’re too numerous to mention. As I ran along with my key, I knew it also unlocked something else. It was my hope that I would find the key to change my life totally when I was ready.

I bought a magnet last week. It’s on my office wall now. And right now, it’s next to my key.





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