Wrong Turn


I met my mother and youngest brother at Maggiano's Little Italy at the King of Prussia Mall for dinner last week. Mom was in from Florida and although I live up here in Anabaptist land, I can get to King of Prussia in just over an hour down the Turnpike. About 70 miles and a cultural chasm as wide as the time between the 20th and 21st Century. Lancaster as a whole is somewhere in the 90's.

I grew up close to the King of Prussia Mall, less than ten minutes. And besides getting terribly lost there then when I was 7, and a few super lame attempts trying to pick-up girls as a teen, and last minute Christmas shopping on Christmas Eve as a young adult, I am really K.O.P. mall-averse. I hate the super-saturated consumerism and all that it represents. The Great Gatsby as a way of life. I didn't have much money as teen and going to the Mall would have just reminded me of being broke all of the time.

Maggiano's is a great place for dinner but watch the drinks. My mom ordered a glass of wine and howled when she saw the bill. One 8 ounce glass of white wine--$15 dollars. My brother and I just had water. I usually don't drink beer or other spirits during the week and it was also raining buckets outside. I wanted to keep my wits about me for the drive home. Plus, it was a school night. I had not recalled Maggiano's ridic prices for drinks.

However, I scored a free second entrée as did my brother. They had some chef special going on. Sweet! 

On the way driving out of the Mall, I got in one of those bad driving scenarios where in order to get to the exit for the Turnpike, I would have had to cross at least two lanes of traffic and I briefly contemplated making such a maneuver.  I had a second or so to make that decision. Because it would have been a risky move I decided against it--I had slowed down to think and observe--and then had to circle back which is not so easy down in K.O.P. where there are 8 lane intersections. Crazy. There is nothing like it road-wise anywhere up here in Central Pa. Not even close.

When I get it difficult situations, whether driving or otherwise, I have learned to pause before acting. Being impulsive by nature, I have to regulate my tendency to react and not think. Or speaking before thinking. My job has taught me the power of pausing. Many of our problems in life are getting in a bad place and then making another bad move. There has to be a kill switch in our souls that gets triggered when danger comes near. Drive away rather than drive toward. Avoiding carnage.



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