The God of Detail
I had to cross to the other side of Jinja Road last evening (I joke to friends that I don’t cross that road for meals and/or unserious stuff). The WHY.... I had been invited to give a talk on "how to resolve water and sanitation issues in communities." (Water-related issues are Rotary’s March theme, and subject-matter experts like yours truly have to give back to society - via investing the most valuable resource: TIME😊). It was a lovely evening. Perhaps one of the best in a while. Anyways, the subject of this post is entirely different from WASH issues...
I had given self 45 minutes to cross from Bukoto to Bugolobi. And be in time for the 6pm engagement. Or so I thought. They say as we plan, God has a good laugh.
Somewhere in Naguru, a truck had failed to negotiate a steep slope; got stuck -- and caused a traffic snarl-up. There is a way traffic nuisances show up whenever one has deadlines. I saw myself not making it to the 6pm. And being late for a presentation/talk is not how to come off as a 'serious' person.
Back to the truck.... the slope is one of the steepest in Naguru. Even for an experienced hand, it requires a delicate balance in case there is a traffic build-up. And that brings us to the gist of this Friday story.
My vehicle has lately been experiencing transmission issues. Something Subaru people are familiar with as the vehicles age. Anyways, that is what I dismissed it as. While doing the delicate balancing, the vehicle decided to move backward - and almost hit the van behind it. I acted fast: engaged neutral and pulled up the hand-brake. After a bit of 'sweating' (remember I had an appointment I could not afford to be late for; scratching/knocking someone's vehicle was not part of the menu), I made it safely to the top of the hill. Traffic flow thereafter was seamless - and I was on time for the 6pm.
What has been eating up the vehicle anyways? Google came in handy: low transmission fluid. That is when the bulb moment came: I checked the vehicle service card, and found there was only 100km remaining:-) Do not ask how I accumulated 3,900km during a pandemic. It is what it is.
Looking back... what if I had scratched that vehicle? A situation would have ensued, and I would not have made it to the 6pm. And that, my friends, is how I relate with God. Mine is a God of detail. I do not need Sunday service to be aware that HE has my back. ALWAYS.
Enjoy the long weekend.
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