We were headed to Florida! It was bright and early, and the back of our Ford Expedition was packed to the ceiling. All three kids were safely buckled into their seats and trying to decide what VHS tape to watch on our portable TV. We were 45 minutes south when the ‘Check Engine’ light came on as we slowly came to a stop on the side of the I-55.
My mind went into overdrive:
“What just happened?”
“Are we safe?”
“Where are we?” (this was in the days before cell phones)
“Is our trip over?”
An Adventure
I noticed an exit about a half mile ahead and started walking to find a phone. As I walked along the highway, my mind was running through all the possible scenarios that could play out. Then I was reminded of a quote I had been pondering that week. It was by G.K. Chesterton, “An inconvenience is an adventure misunderstood.” This was definitely an inconvenience! How could I apply this to my current situation? I determined not to freak out but to remain calm and look for something positive in the midst of this mess.
A Memorable Ride
To my relief there was a gas station at the exit. I called our Ford dealership who sent a tow truck. The cab I called to pick up my wife and kids arrived about the same time as the tow truck. They went on ahead to arrange for a loaner van while I stayed with our disabled car. As we got into the cab of the truck to begin our trip back north the driver commented on having just gone to bed a couple of hours ago after a long night of partying. He was about twice my age and had a tattoo on his forearm that said “SATAN.” He saw me looking at it and quickly let me know that he woke up with it one day after a bender. I nervously began to chat him up looking for some common ground to connect. After a few minutes of back and forth he said he went to high school with Elvis. I said my dad did as well and it turned out he knew my father! The next 30 minutes were spent hearing stories about his experience with my dad.
Made It!
Once at the dealership, we transferred all our stuff into the loaner van and headed to the beach a second time. We were two hours late for dinner, but my dad was amused to hear about our meeting his classmate. We had been inconvenienced but had flipped it into an adventure that we will always remember.
The next time you experience an unexpected interruption or detour will you view it as an inconvenience or an adventure?
