Planning

I have a friend who, in her words, had never made a plan in her life.  As a result, her lifestyle was very different from mine.  I used to tease her about the negative aspects of that difference, but she was used to being how she was.  I on the other hand, have always valued planning ahead, and not so much far-into-the-future as detailed-and-precise.  The farthest ahead I probably ever planned was my move to NorCal, which took three years of preparation to bring about, but it worked.  But my plans for whatever my next step is are usually very defined and exact, with a discrete timeframe.  I used to work at camp with some people who took the attitude that "the Lord will provide."  My perspective was more like "the Lord will provide, by sending people like me, who actually know how to plan."

It is interesting to see that my friend has learned to plan in the last year or so, and is now making plans for the year after next, and the following summer.  While I don't even know what I am doing in March, let alone this summer.  In my case it is more about timetables, in that I know some of the things I plan to do, but I don't have an exact plan for when to do them.  After last summer's trip across the country took so many unexpected turns, and everything worked out fine, I have learned that it is okay not to plan certain things.

I always like to illustrate my previous perspective on planning with the old pipe game.  The objective of this classic computer game was to build a pipe system progressively longer, faster than the liquid flowing through the pipes toward the end at a constant rate.  Plans are like the pipes, they get created in parts, at various times, and don't necessarily all connect early on in the process.  Time is like the liquid in the pipe, constantly advancing forward at a steady rate, whether you are prepared for it or not.  And we hurry to string the pipes together soon enough to control the flow of liquid through them.  Certain pipes laid down may not end up getting used at all, depending on the route taken.

In the game, the round is immediately over when the liquid reaches the end of the pipe and "spills out."  I subconsciously assumed the same thing would happen in life, and worked hard to make sure my plans kept up with the progression of time.  But that is not true, and in real life, things keep going when we run out of plans.  The direction of flow is not necessarily controlled by us, but may happen to reach some of the other pipes we have laid.  But we don't know how long it might take for the flow to get there, or if it will at all.  (This is probably good practice for the two player version of the game, where your partner might have a few pipes that don't naturally fit with the pipes you have been laying.)

Anyhow, after "winning the game" for years, the water reached the end of my pipe about a year and a half ago, and it would appear that I have continued to survive.  Life is very different now, and I have learned a lot.  I probably have a ways to go before I could be as free or impulsive as certain other people I know, but that is not necessarily the objective.  I am a lot more flexible than I used to be, and am becoming more spontaneous as well.  So Hawaii, here I come!