Robert Burns said it best in 1780 when he wrote, “The best laid plans of mice and men oft go awry” and how true those words still ring today. My initial intent for this email was to test out a ton of items that you guys picked out for me. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to make that plan happen.
Between a completely full campground (which I would have hated anyway, as the point of camping is to “get away”) and the 40+ mile per hour winds, my weekend appeared to be destroyed.
I could have just tossed up my hands and been done for the weekend but instead I decided to grab my fishing pole and take a short hike down to the creek for a bit of fishing.
As I made my first few casts, I looked up and chuckled to myself when I noticed all of the bobbers and lures caught in the trees above. It was almost as though someone had built a man sized mobile. I spent several hours musing in the silence and occasionally reeling in for a new cast. After a few hours of not catching anything, I went home.
This weekend might be viewed by many as a setback but instead I used it as a way to highlight and reaffirm two very important things.
1.) Adaptation: The ability to adapt has brought our species to the pinnacle of the food chain and kept us there. We are no longer having to adapt to massive weather changes or having to learn more efficient ways to kill large predators, but we still must adapt to new conditions every day. Regardless of if we are having to learn a new skill for a job or learning to cope with a loss, every day on top of the dirt needs to be considered a learning experience.
Ask yourself before you go to bed each night, “what did I learn today?” Every day may not be a new revelation, but you may be surprised at the amount of new information that is stored each day.
2.) Enjoy life and learn to love the small things: I could have gotten angry, stomped off back to my car and just given up. Instead I decided to make the best of what I had. I was in a state park had a fishing pole and did not need a license to catch anything. I was able to step away from the city for a moment and catch a breath of fresh air. With all of the stress of work and everyday life, sometimes you just need to turn off the cell phone and relax. The failed camping trip also freed up some time for me to spend with my little brothers and get in some much needed bonding time.
Never consider any setback a failure, only a lesson in how not to do something.
Next time I will do a bit more research on my camp location and plan my camping somewhere other than a highly trafficked state park that apparently only has 12 campsites. What lessons have you learned from something that most others would consider a failure?
