Hands Off of The Steering Wheel

All of us are control freaks, in one form or the other. While we all know plenty of people, who just seem content to go "wherever the river in life takes them," the bottom line is in one shape or form, they are aggressively trying to tread water. There are pieces here that I can discuss openly, there are some that out of respect to regulations or mandated laws that I can generalize, and some others that aren't going to make it here. As many of you know, I am an aggressive individual, and wish that I could knock down seizures with a few .45 rounds with no impunity. I have no mercy for them. Yet it is sadly not that simple, and it has taken a long time, to simply admit that there are things beyond my control as a man who's often able to protect others, but just like everyone else is human. "Hands off of the Steering Wheel" is a difficult task, and these are a few examples of how, we are not in control of life, no matter how much we have our stuff together.

A well prepared team went into a routine training mission. This event was only to last an hour or two, and it was "time to hit the showers." That's right, a day of kicking back, chilling, and doing whatever was desired later that day. A young man died that day. In his mid twenties and in the prime of his life. Gone. A man was flying his helicopter over a hostile territory, cleared the area, when shrapnel came flying in. His co-pilot's lungs were punctured with bullets, and this pilot was somehow able to bring the Cobra back into base, barely alive and with marks that were not only on his body, but with him still to this day. He carries more internal scars than the ones that show on him, and still feels guilty that his best friend who was manning the controls with him that day, are gone. A young police officer in another country, saw a grenade tossed in a subway. Without hesitation, this man full of vibrancy and compassion for life and his family and friends, jumped upon it. His death saved everyone else. He was only a few hours before getting off of work, and his is 10-7 for the remainder.

A man in his fifties was found in his work truck unresponsive. He had been plodding all day, enjoying the summer breeze. CPR was unable to revive him, as the AED detected no pulse. A father's sadness about his son's passing continues as he died on the gridiron, practicing football, a game that he had played since he could walk. A couple was gunned down as they went on their evening walk. The woman enjoying a day off on a hike, was run over by a bicyclist, who forever has to realize that his actions caused her to be so missed by her family and friends. A man fixing an electrical component, of which he was fully licensed for, deliver thousands of volts to his body. What should have been a routine fix, was anything but that. A mother discovered her adult son had passed away, as she found him downstairs, getting his socks on ready for work.

These events are all painful. Every single one of them results in death. They are the "lightning bolt" that hit that person, and spread out to affect so many. Family and friends of these people cry to this day, and sadly many people blame themselves, including a kind gentleman who was hit by a drunk driver who lost his life on a motorcycle. These heavy hearts are in our communities, around us every single day. Often there are no signs, with the exception to that rule, often being in someone's eyes. These truly are mirrors to the soul, and each person has to contend with that moment when "they have to take their hands off that steering wheel." It stinks. There's no denying that. Whether you believe in God or don't, there are just these times, that there is no explanation for what happened. It is because of these, that we all should be appreciative of every single moment, every blessing, each moment of bliss that brings us happiness. We never know where our steering wheel will lead us, and while our hands might be on it, we are not in control of so much in life.