Friday, April 24, 2015

Off Again - part 1

Surprise! I'm going to Georgia!  My life is starting to feel like the Dr. Seuss book  Oh The Places You'll Go. I got a summer job in Georgia with Alterra out of the blue and now I'm on a 3 day road-trip with twelve return missionaries traveling cross country. Life takes so many twists, turns, and unexpected ups and downs. I guess the two things I still need to learn are: to be elastic and to prepare to be surprised.



 

 




Oh! The Places You’ll Go!
by Dr. Seuss

Congratulations!
Today is your day.
You're off to Great Places!
You're off and away!
You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself any direction you choose.
You're on your own. And you know what you know. 
And YOU are the guy who'll decide where to go.
You'll look up and down streets. Look'em over with care.
About some you will say, “I don't choose to go there.”
With your head full of brains and your shoes full of feet,
you're too smart to go down a not-so-good street.
And you may not find any you'll want to go down. In that
case, of course, you'll head straight out of town. It's
opener there in the wide open air.
Out there things can happen and frequently do to people
as brainy and footsy as you.
And when things start to happen, don't worry. Don't
stew. Just go right along. You'll start happening too.
Oh! The Places You'll Go!


You'll be on your way up!
You'll be seeing great sights!
You'll join the high fliers who soar to high heights.
You won't lag behind, because you'll have the speed.
You'll pass the whole gang and you'll soon take the lead.
Wherever you fly, you'll be best of the best. Wherever
you go, you will top all the rest.
Except when you don't.
Because, sometimes, you won't.
I'm sorry to say so but, sadly, it's true that Bang-ups and
Hang-ups can happen to you.
You can get all hung up in a prickle-ly perch. And your
gang will fly on. You'll be left in a Lurch.
You'll come down from the Lurch with an unpleasant
bump. And the chances are, then, that you'll be in a Slump.
And when you're in a Slump, you're not in for much fun.
Un-slumping yourself is not easily done.
You will come to a place where the streets are not
marked. Some windows are lighted. But mostly they're
darked. A place you could sprain both your elbow and
chin! Do you dare to stay out? Do you dare to go in? How
much can you lose? How much can you win?
And if you go in, should you turn left or right...or right-and-three-quarters? 
Or, maybe, not quite?
Or go around back and sneak in from behind? Simple it's not, I'm
afraid you will find, for a mind-maker-upper to make up
his mind.
You can get so confused that you'll start in to race down
long wiggled roads at a break-necking pace and grind on
for miles
across weirdish wild space, headed, I fear,
toward a most useless place.
The Waiting Place...for people just waiting.
Waiting for a train to go or a bus to come, or a plane to go
or the mail to come, or the rain to go or the phone to ring,
or the snow to snow or waiting around for a Yes or No or
waiting for their hair to grow. Everyone is just waiting.
Waiting for the fish to bite or waiting for wind to fly a
kite or waiting around for Friday night or waiting,
perhaps, for their Uncle Jake or a pot to boil, or a Better
Break or a string of pearls, or a pair of pants or a wig with
curls, or Another Chance. Everyone is just waiting.
No! That's not for you!
Somehow you'll escape all that waiting and staying.
You'll find the bright places where Boom Bands are
playing. With banner flip-flapping, once more you‟ll ride
high! Ready for anything under the sky. Ready because
you're that kind of a guy!
Oh, the places you'll go! There is fun to be done! There
are points to be scored. There are games to be won. And
the magical things you can do with that ball will make
you the winning-est winner of all. Fame! You'll be
famous as famous can be, with the whole wide world
watching you win on TV.
Except when they don't. Because, sometimes, they won't.
I'm afraid that some times
you'll play lonely games too.
Games you can't win, cause you'll play against you.
All Alone!
Whether you like it or not, Alone will be something you'll
be quite a lot.
And when you're alone, there's a very good chance you'll
meet things that scare you
right out of your pants. There
are some, down the road between hither and yon, that can
scare you so much you won't want to go on.
But on you will go though the weather be foul. On you
will go though your enemies prowl. On you will go
though the Hakken-Kraks howl. Onward up many a
frightening creek, though your arms may get sore and
your sneakers may leak. On and on you will hike. And I
know you'll hike far and face up to your problems
whatever they are.
You'll get mixed up, of course, as you already know.
You'll get mixed up with many strange birds as you go.
So be sure when you step. Step with care and great tact
and remember that Life's a Great Balancing Act. Just
never forget to be dexterous and deft. And never mix up
your right foot with your left.
And will you succeed?
Yes! You will, indeed!
(98 and ¾ percent guaranteed.)
Kid, you'll move mountains!
So...be your name Buxbaum or Bixby or Bray or
Mordecai Ale Van Allen O'Shea, you're off to Great
Places!Today is your day!
Your mountain is waiting.
So...get on your way!

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