Many of you probably know that your MoM writes most of these from the cozy corner table at Starbucks. I’m tucked into the corner so that anyone who approaches can’t sneak up on me. I call it my “Godfather Table”. Sometimes I have to take a different seat and wait until my place opens up, but none of that is really important now. Today, my seat was open. The only other person in the whole store was a lone guy sitting next to it, and that didn’t last long. Before I could order, he got up and left. And that is where we pick things up…

I looked out the window to see him begin to drive off. When I came in I noticed that he had a less than happy demeanor about him, but let’s face it, a lot of folks look that way at Starbucks before the coffee feels kick in. It may have been tired or it might have been a mood, who can say? The next part of the story is where it gets interesting. As he drove off he was in more of a hurry than I would recommend and he cut the exit to his parking space short. BAM! Both passenger side tires bounced over the curb. He kept driving, and honestly, I don’t know how much damage he did to his car, wheels, and tires. However, I am certain that there was at least some damage done. It might be a tiny amount. It might not even be particularly detectable, but I know that it was there. Even if it was just a case of weakening something in view of a future failure, it’s there.

The small things that we do that may seem insignificant can have an additive effect. A little bit here, a little more there and next thing you know, something breaks. Most people don’t jump into addiction with both feet. We tend to wade out to sea from the beach. One day we are sitting in the sun with sand at our feet then eventually we wind up with waves crashing over our heads.

So watch out for the curbs. Exit those parking spaces carefully. The curbs make us bounce, but we need to…

–Rise Up!!