Some Days Are Predictable

Some things are predictable. Like catching a cold in February. Which I, predictably, have done. I find the predictability of this cold strangely reassuring.

Predictable can be good. The longer I live, the more I know this to be true. There is a certain level of comfort knowing what is coming next.

Predictable can also be boring. This is especially true when things are just a little bit too predicable. Like a movie on Lifetime Movie Network. I say this from recent experience. I watched several of these movies this past weekend. With a cold, it is hard to do anything that takes too much physical or cognitive energy. I really did not worry about being out of breath or needing to connect any dots with a LMN movie.

Unpredictable can also be good. Like a bouquet of flowers delivered at work, reminding you - and all of your colleagues - how loved you are. Like a daughter who announces she would like to change her hair to a color not found in nature. Unpredictable is definitely not boring.

Unpredictable, along with uncertainty and ambiguity, can be not so good. Really not so good. Bad. Times when it feels like the floor has dropped out from under us. Times so unpredicted that it is not possible to be prepared, to feel at all ready to take on the challenge.

I find I am not surprised when something predicable happens. So why is it so unbelievable when something unpredictable happens?

I cannot really go any further with this thought because of this predictable, February cold. I hope this cold is over soon. Best to be healthy - physically, emotionally, spiritually - when the next wave of unpredictable comes knocking. Because it always does.