It Kept My Card!

Yesterday morning on my way to Church around 7:15 a.m., I ran by the ATM machine to get some cash. I rarely ever use an ATM machine but my wife thought she might forget it so I agreed to do it. For some reason either me or the machine malfunctioned and I did not get the money and it kept my card. The screen said I did not retrieve my card fast enough but I don't believe it ever ejected my card. To say the least I was needing to be in Church after that experience.

I called my wife and told her that fortunately I didn't have a shotgun or baseball bat with me because I would have soon been spending time with the Feds had I been able to fully vent my frustrations at that moment. Of course she tended to think maybe the machine was okay but since I haven't used it in a long time maybe it ejected the card but I didn't see it. She later went by and said that when it gives the card back it barely comes out of the slot. I can't get her on my side even when it's a machine involved!

At any rate: What a way to start the day! Interestingly enough we did our Worship Choir Christmas musical yesterday and the title is: "There Is Peace In The World Tonight". The whole idea of the 45 minute presentation is how that peace comes only through the Prince of Peace and it is not the absence of conflict, difficulties, or run ins with ATM machines. Okay, I did try to get myself straightened up before teaching my class and I did eventually come to realize that perhaps the entire incident was their way of trying to offer precaution and safety were I in some type of danger or something like that.

Hey, I love technology but it like so many other things in life works good or doesn't work. The bottom line is being upset, angry, furious, and ready to exercise the most violent road rage known to mankind, (I just had to get this out of my system), is somewhat ridiculous when you consider it within the larger context of life. Just last week I saw a news report from our metro area about a young man who killed another young man because of being aggravated in traffic. How sad. Now the man who was killed will not be home with his young family for Christmas, and the one who killed him is also taken away from his young family.

Senseless and tragic, but that's what happens whenever we fail to find true peace. My wife is supposed to go to our bank this morning and try to figure out what to do about my little problem. Jokingly, I told her to tell them that they did not want me to come and deal with it myself. It reminds me of whenever the boys had friends sleeping over and how I yelled up the stairs that they did not want me to come up there. They obviously were not that concerned because they kept on making noise, and I'm sure the banking people wouldn't be either.

If we didn't have these little bumps in the road, what would life be like? And, here I would be at 5:30 a.m., on a Monday morning, wondering what to blog about today! But, if I were to meet that ATM machine, one on one, with no one looking, it would be "Bang, zoom, to the moon, ATM!", but of course I am only joking because you can tell I have put this entire incident behind me, behind me, behind me. Hey, have a wonderful and blessed week! ........ more later.