We think we can plan for every contingency. We take the flu shot, install a burglar alarm, and buy insurance. We use sunscreen and look both ways before we cross the street. We don’t want surprises. We want to be safe and equipped to handle whatever life brings.
The human condition runs under a flawed premise. We believe we have control.
I have lived in South Florida for my entire life and I thought that an occasional alligator in a canal, sharks sighted along our coast, or pythons in the Everglades were the only dangerous wildlife in our area. Apparently, I was wrong.
A shocking accident recently occurred when an SUV struck a black bear 15 miles north of Interstate 75 on Snake Road. The deadly and bizarre chain reaction that followed has served as a sobering reality check about just how out of our control life can really be.
The 300-pound bear died in the initial collision. The SUV was badly damaged. Several trucks heading home from a hunting trip saw what had happened and soon stopped to help.
In the crowded confusion, a Mercedes headed in the opposite direction struck vehicles and people at the scene. Three of those individuals were killed; eight were injured and taken to local hospitals. Some were transported by rescue helicopter. One was a 14-year-old boy.
The bear seemed to have wandered away from home. There is apparently a population of black bears in the dense forest wilderness of Big Cypress and Fakahatchee Strand. The area is northwest and far from the Miami-Dade/Broward-County location where the accident occurred. According to local police, an accident involving a bear is quite unusual.
The incident was completely unforeseeable. The only term to describe the set of circumstances surrounding it is “freak occurrence.”
Man plans and God laughs. We like to think we have everything arranged and mapped out. In reality, we really don’t know what will be.
Man can scheme and dream. However, there is only one thing he can have in his control and that is how he will handle what is dished out. He can’t control the menu. The realization of this fact is perhaps the ultimate epiphany in the understanding of life.
Life is fragile. Every moment is a gift. It is also quite precarious. Sometimes we find ourselves on a slow train chugging along. Sometimes we find ourselves on a wild roller coaster. There is no choice but to hang on and go along for the ride.