Late for Your Life

Tonight, Mary and I are going to see Mary Chapin Carpenter in Aurora.  She is a very talented composer and performer with many hits during her career such as “He Thinks He’ll Keep Her”, “Shut Up and Kiss Me”, “Down at the Twist and Shout”, “I Feel Lucky”, “Passionate Kisses, “I Take My Chances” and “Stones in the Road.” She is such an incredible writer and manages to stir emotions through her lyrics …kind of like Bob Dylan, but with great vocals.  I find a great deal of introspection through the words of “Late for Your Life.” 

“You’ve been saying for the longest time that the time has come.

You’ve been talking like you’re of a mind to get some changing done.

Maybe move out of the city, find some quiet little town

where you can sit on your back porch step and watch the sun go down.

No one knows where they belong; the search just goes on and on and on

for every chance that ends up wrong another one’s right

A change of scene would sure be great; the thought is nice to contemplate

But the question begs why would you wait and be late for your life?”

It sometimes is a struggle to wonder if this is the right path.  Is there is another route that I should be taking?  Is what I am doing supposed to be what I am doing?  Is this the right place for me? Should I be doing something different with my life?  Do I really enjoy what I do?  Why do most of my days seem like bad days? (my beautiful wife says that bad days are just good days in disguise). Why am I not advancing at the speed I had imagined?  What if I switched careers at this stage in my life?  Is the grass really greener on the other side of the fence…or over the septic tank for that matter? Why do I have to wear so many different hats?  As Ms. Carpenter writes above, the search just goes on and on and on.  Here’s what I believe for what it is worth – bloom where you are planted.  If this is truly what you were called to do, then leave it better than you found it. If you do not have the passion at that level, then you probably should consider finding that passion in something else.  Just being in the right place doesn’t mean that everything will go as planned or that life is a bed of roses (I never really understood that phrase since roses have thorns as well).  Victories come by winning, and sometimes, losing the battles along the way.  Make the most of every opportunity that you have to make a difference in where you are placed.  Don’t miss that.  Don’t’ be late for your life.