Sitting outside, dining in Houston, TX, I was recently reminded of the fragility of time. It began with a young couple being photographed near a fountain in the middle of a busy intersection. Beautiful green dress blowing perfectly in the wind, a picturesque waterfall in the background, and a handsome man adorned in his Sunday’s finest.
They Will Never Know
You see, what this couple will never know is how closely they came to a tragedy that day. If those pictures were taken only minutes later, they may not be alive to see them. My husband and I were sitting on the patio of a restaurant across the street from where the couple was being photographed. Less than ten minutes after the session wrapped up and the couple walked off, a high-speed police chase ensued. The car being chased ultimately crashed into the sidewalk at the very same spot the couple stood. Because the car was traveling so fast, it then flipped a few times and landed in a nearby green space. At this point, the driver got out with his hands up and surrendered.
My mind immediately thought of the photography session. What if they had taken the pictures ten minutes later?
Hold Ups
Often we yell at our children to ‘Hurry Up,’ complain about being stuck in traffic, or grow impatient when service is slow. I am the first one to admit to being guilty of all three! Perhaps those hold-ups are holding us up from something terrible. We often will never know. Because of the nature of our fast-paced lives, we only know that we do not have time for hold-ups. We are busy and hold-ups get in the way.
We unfortunately only hear of the accidents and tragedies that do happen. The story of the couple being photographed in the very same spot as the police chase is not newsworthy. Being held up in traffic and late for work will not make the headlines. However, a young couple being struck during a high-speed police chase would have definitely been broadcast on every news outlet across Houston.
Timing is Everything
We all know the dramatic stories of missed flights that later crashed or fires while families were away on vacation. Sitting outside that Sunday afternoon, I never imagined a high-speed police chase would unfold before my eyes. Although scary and unsettling, that scene was the perfect reminder for me that time is a precious gift. We may never know how often we have skirted tragedy due to timing.
