Why are things so symbolic to me at the end of the year?
As I was heading to the train
station on a rainy morning, I came upon a scene where a fuel tanker truck ran
off the road. The scene was quite a brouhaha for the small town of Doraville,
Georgia. City police cars lined both sides of the road with their flashing blue
lights penetrating the morning darkness. Cars with those deep red brake lights
were starting to back up on the roadway. Even the local FOX television
affiliate was on the scene complete with the reporter explaining the accident to
viewers over the hum of the TV trucks’ running idle motor while the light rain
pelted his station overcoat.
Of course, the authorities were
waving us through the tanker accident area with the ole, “move along, nothing
to see here folks” on their minds. Since it was dark and rainy, I kept my eyes
on the guys and gals ushering us through because, A. I just wished to get to
the train station and B. I didn’t want to run them over or heaven forbid, end
up in a ditch like that fuel tanker truck driver. I typically fight that urge
to gawk at someone else’s misfortune, but our culture promotes it with that
feeling of, “we got to know!”
I didn’t know the full story
until I checked my Twitter feed while on the train a few minutes after passing
the accident. Sure enough, the FOX television affiliate was all over the story:
“Tanker falls off road in Doraville.” In my early morning thoughts, my mind
wanders to a philosophical point: “’What does this mean?” Is this symbolic to
me like, “My life fell off the road and/or will fall off the tracks today! Do
what you can to keep yourself on the road!’?” I know, that’s weird, but this
was a dark, rainy morning, so as the pop music duo Milli Vanilli once
lip-synched to, “Blame it on the Rain.”
Do you ever get that feeling that
everything is a symbol for what has happened or could happen in your life? What
if that wayward tanker was a symbol that I fell off the tracks this year,
wasting golden opportunities? Or, what if this lost tanker means that I will
lose control of everything that matter to me in life? As this year comes to a
close, do you feel that you made the most out of the past 12 months and were on
track? If you felt like you fell off the road like that fuel truck, do you plan
to remain committed to getting “back on the road” to making the most out of
2016? I know, this is typically end-of-year melancholy, but I cannot help to
see that symbolism.
Aside from the symbolism, here
we are going into a new year with year-ender stories festooning newspapers,
magazines, radio and TV. Combine that with the retail world promoting products
that will help you turn over a new leaf in the New Year.
Speaking of the New Year, the
weather outside is not frightening, but just plain weird. It was been a tad
warm in the final weeks of 2015. I’m not complaining, but I’m afraid that we
will get our comeuppance with wintry weather in the early part of 2016. I’m
afraid that I we will not only see fuel tankers fall off the roads, but scores
of vehicles sliding around due to ice and snow come this January, February or
March.
With the wayward truck story, it’s
my insecurities at work here, but in reality, this was just another fuel tanker
that ended up in a ditch. With that in mind, I hope that no one was hurt
including the driver and anyone helping him or her.
Comments