I’m Looking for Yellow Lines

Driving home from Yachats I had this weird thought as I was looking at the double yellow lines painted down the center of a stretch of highway. Those lines are there to warn us not to pass because the road ahead may be dangerous. They are there to say, Rick, don’t do it, be patient and wait for a nice long straight away.

How often are there warning signs in our lives that tell us to slow down and yet we ignore them and try to pass anyway? I’m thinking of moments where my wife says Rick don’t worry about that there’s nothing you can do about it, and yet, I worry and try to fix it or get it done. How many times have I tossed and turned in my sleep, thinking about something I can’t change at that particular moment, and yet I worry anyway? I say to myself, ignore it and go to sleep.

There are yellow lines painted all over our lives. Warnings that say, you don’t need that, take a break, rest, don’t do any work, sleep a little longer, go ahead and go to the gym, or not.

As I was watching those yellow lines pass by my car I thought to myself and now share it with you, we need to pay more attention to the signs. We need to ignore the sounds that distract us and get done what we can and delegate the rest.

I’m looking for yellow lines.

No Comments

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  barbara June 29, 2008 at 8:46 pm

  Waiting is the key for me. So much of my life is so busy, so time-driven, so rushed…so when something major comes up, I feel like I have to answer / address it immediately. A friend told me recently to go ahead and accept my gut reaction, but not to react on it. Instead, she said, I should just “sit with it” for a moment or two, take a deep breath and become aware of why I had that reaction, and if it was just that – a reaction, or if it was truly my heart’s desired response.

  The double yellow “waiting” line – I like that. I’ll never look at stretches of road the same way.
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  Patriot June 29, 2008 at 11:33 pm

  Rick there is alot of truth to the yellow line annalogy. I know even in my own life, which at times seems to busy, I fail to delegate. Last summer I took a leadership course, and one of the 7 Habits we were tought on was “circle of concern vs. circle of infulence” alot of times we are so cought up in our circle of concern that we loose sight of what is actually in our circle of infuence. When we concentrate on what is in our circle of infuence we might find that some of the things we were concerned about get resolved as we go.

  I know I get thinking I need to do every job myself, and do not delegate jobs out. I think alot of times I dont trust my Yellow Lines, as if they were going to lead me off some road.

  In a way maybe that is why I am such a big supporter of yours. Because the Secretary of State is some one we delegate with out highest Yellow Line, a bright yellow maybe even better then that yellow of our beloved Ducks. You are fighting to be responsible for my voice, for the protection of my right to vote as an American.

  I can tell you, there is no line I would trust more fully then the one you are on.