Surprise!

Yes, life is full of surprises. When you least expect it, something out of the ordinary will happen.

 Case in point, yesterday I took Sugar (my ninety pound yellow Lab) to be groomed. The groomer is located in the back of the store. Halfway through the store Sugar took off running and boom! I went down. Surprise! I said a bad word and immediately apologized to those around me, and I was embarrassed. Today I’m stiff and sore, and I have a lump under my knee, and bruises. With some twists and turns, this episode might end up in a book someday. Thankfully, I was with Sugar, and not with her brother who weighs more than I do (but we won’t discuss the weight issue).

If you’ve read Bubba’s Ghost, there’s a skid-row type bum who harasses a young mother and her daughter. That’s based on something that actually happened to me. Imagine my surprise when I opened the door and found this man on my porch, telling me what he’d seen me do and who he’d seen visiting me, among other things.

I have a friend who, many years ago, climbed into her car in a bank parking lot and reached across to unlock the passenger door so we could leave and go back to work. Suddenly there was a man in her lap, screaming at her about being a Fed, and waving a fake badge in her face. Surprise! He was a mugger. He dragged her out of the car and they struggled on the ground. What stopped him? Me and my big purse as he looked up and saw it swinging in his direction. The look on his face was priceless. I still carry very large purses. Maybe it’s psychological. Oh, before I forget, that led to a scene in A Well-Kept Family Secret.

Maybe you’re sitting in a left turn lane, waiting for traffic to pass, and someone rear ends you. Surprise! Thankfully, that hasn’t happened to me.

Life is full of surprises. Some are actually a good thing, and others, not so much. We sometimes have to learn to take things in stride, even if we’d rather throw a tantrum. There are moments when even adults would like to stomp their feet and yell.

The other day I found out that I had to rebuild my website. The website builder I’d been using was going away, and I had to use a different program. The company, as it turns out, had been sending me notices, but they had my old email address. I was sure I’d sent them my new address, but apparently I was wrong. I spent most of last week building the new site. Surprise!

Twists and turns can turn some of our real life surprises into either scenes in a story or an entire book. I’ve done it and so have others. At least my life isn’t boring, although there are moments when I wish… No, I don’t. I wouldn’t have stories to tell if I led a boring life.

Pay attention to your life, and the lives of those around you, and file what you’ve seen in the back of your mind for future use.

By the way, Sugar is about to enter a stage of her life where she’s going to be learning new, and relearning old, commands. When I moved from Arizona to Washington, she and her brother, Murphy, seemed to lose all memory of any training they had.

And remember, no matter what happens, there’s often a funny side. Laughter really is the best medicine. Ask my daughter. She took a fall yesterday, too, and what did I do? I laughed, even though it wasn’t funny.  Two accidents in one day – like mother, like daughter.

Tell us about some of your good surprises. We can all use a lift. Here’s one. My daughter and I went out to dinner at a very nice restaurant to celebrate something, and before we’d finished eating the manager came over to tell us that another customer had paid for our dinner. We never knew who it was or why they treated us, but I think I’ll be paying that forward.

Until next time, watch out for crazy dogs, muggers and bums at your front door.

CLICK HERE to visit the new Marja McGraw website (Rebuilt recently)

CLICK HERE for a quick trip to Amazon.com

 Don’t forget that Choosing One Moment – A Time Travel Mystery is now available in both email and paperback.

If you ever receive an inheritance, you may want to think it over carefully before you begin sorting through antiques and mementos. They aren’t always as they seem.

Carrie McFerrin learned this the hard way.