One Man. Two Trains

     I was astounded to read of a fellow in my hometown who was hit by a train. Or to be precise… two trains. (Or possibly, the same train on two different occasions.)

     You see, “Mr. George Wilson” had a habit of crossing that particular set of tracks, on his way to somewhere, most everyday. Well, one day about three years ago, it seems he started across those tracks, as he’d done a hundred times previously.

     But today was distinctly different from all those other days. Since this time he was run down by a locomotive… and lived. Oh, he received some pretty significant injuries to his head, arms, and legs. But he lived through the ordeal.

     And to be fair to Old George, he was deaf. So, he might be excused for the oversight, (though I expect the problem might have been remedied before it began, if he’d only looked left, and right before crossing those legendary tracks.)

     Well, I think you and I would agree that the foregoing story is bad enough. But, it happened again.

      Several years passed, and George continued to walk the same path he’d walked in the past; going somewhere. And one day pretty much blended into the next; ‘til that next very memorable day.

      The engineer told investigators that he blew the whistle for all he was worth, and threw on his emergency brakes; but it wasn’t nearly enough. The locomotive hit Old George with a dull, and sickening thud. The poor little man was pronounced dead at the scene.

     Authorities don’t believe that either of George’s accidents were the result of suicidal intentions.

     The report of Mr. Wilson’s mishaps remind me of people I have known; clients, recovery group members, and "others.” There’s a fitting phrase that says, “If you keep on doing the same things you’ve always done, you’ll keep on getting the same things you've always gotten.” 

 

     A pastor presented a hypothetical, but similar story to his congregation. He told the parable of a man who happened to be walking down a particular street one day. Suddenly, the man disappeared out of sight. For you see, he'd fallen into an open manhole.

     The pastor continued, “Well, the man wasn’t badly hurt, and managed to climb out. But, it so happened the fella continued to walk down that same street, and seemed oblivious to the original lesson. Word is, he fell into that same manhole twenty-six more times!”

     Well friends, I think both Old George, (and the man in the last story) made the serious mistake of repeating a pretty grievous error; an error that had life-challenging ramifications.

      I suppose such trends are most obvious in substance abusers. Most never find a way to “break cycles.” And so they keep “going around in circles;” going places they should avoid, and participating in things they should reject; doing the same thing, over and over. Just when you think they’re going to get free and stay clean; they relapse.

     I hope if you meet that next train in your own tunnel, that you will step out of the way, and flag it down. Since it can take you somewhere a lot more quickly than you can walk.

By William McDonald, PhD. Excerpt from "Musings"