The Wednesday Fortune Cookie: Fortune Favours the Patient


Wednesday Fortune CookieAs I waited in the not-so-rush-hour traffic this morning, my attention was brought to a sign on the back of the white van in front of me. The van had one of those buckets that lift electricians up to the heights of street lighting hanging off the back, and this bucket was the reason why I hadn’t noticed the sign any earlier.

It’s funny, the things you think about or notice (or don’t notice for that matter) when you are waiting behind the wheel. It’s as though your mind wanders, and everything that is around you isn’t there. Or maybe that’s just me. I’m very often in another Parallel Universe anyway, so why not be in one whilst behind the wheel of a car as well?

Anyway, I digress.

The sign read “Caution. This vehicle stops irregularly.”

Now. Nothing untoward with that, is there? Well, when you start imagining the vehicle shimmying slightly, or hopping over to the side of the road as it is stopping, the sign takes on a different meaning entirely.

I imagined, whilst stationary, the van in front moving in a body-popping dance motion when it needed to stop. A double pirouette as it came into the side of the road. Fanfare and confetti as the wheels stopped turning. And a firework display as the engine was turned off.

A second later, the traffic started to move and my random daydream was over.

The power of words. They can take us to so many different places if we allow them to. Our imagination is a fantastic place, and the possibilities there are endless.

Bizarrely, a phrase sprung to mind this evening. “Softly,softly, catchee monkey”, which basically means patience gains the day. Waiting, as I knew my mind would bring another phrase, “Many a mickle makes a muckle” shortly followed. A load of small things makes a big one.

So. I think my mind is sending me a message today. The celebratory fireworks will come if I am patient, and take things one step at a time… there’s no need to rush anything.

I won the Euromillions last night.

No, not the £148,000,000.00 that was the top prize. I won £3.30. Which wasn’t bad, until you consider I’d paid £4.00 to play. My choice, I know, but another phrase comes to mind with regards to this… “one step forward and two steps back.”

I suppose the overall thing is the direction that I’m heading in, where I want to end up, and how I get there. Messages from the Universe appear every day… I just need to be able to take notice of the more relevant ones, and not the “Sale now on!” ones. Well, until I win the Euromillions, that is, and in that case I won’t need to pay attention to the “Sale now on!” signs anyway.

Sigh.

The power of words. Signs.

Softly, softly, catchee monkey… and feel good waiting!

20 responses to “The Wednesday Fortune Cookie: Fortune Favours the Patient”

  1. prenin avatar

    Amen my friend! 🙂

    I hope and pray we both win – £148 Million is a lot of money… 🙂

    God Bless my friend! 🙂

    Prenin.

    Like

    1. Tom (Aquatom1968) avatar

      It certainly is, Prenin, isn’t it?
      However,one or two million would be OK with me…
      Have a good night! 🙂

      Like

  2. Let's CUT the Crap! avatar

    Fingers crossed you win, BUT you’re on the hook to taking ALL your blogger friends out to dinner…

    Like

    1. Tom (Aquatom1968) avatar

      That sounds like a good idea, Tess. It would have to be a bit more than £3.30 though! 😀

      Like

  3. shreejacob avatar

    Your quest for the Euromillions reminds me of my sister while your day dreaming and wandering about reminds me of me…LOL.

    Here’s to your millions!!!!

    Like

    1. Tom (Aquatom1968) avatar

      Thanks, Shree!
      Hopes and dreams… where would we be without them?

      Like

  4. Andra Watkins avatar

    Will you still be my friend if you win a bazillion pounds, Tom?

    This post reminded me of a sign from my honeymoon. Australia.

    CAUTION: The ground beneath you may subside at any moment. (As an American, I had to translate that………………)

    Like

    1. Tom (Aquatom1968) avatar

      Of course I will, Andra!
      I always get subsidence and subsistence mixed up. One is supporting and one, well, isn’t…

      Like

  5. lameadventures avatar

    You’re feeling quite philosophical. As I read your post a saying from my youth came to mind. Every time I ate a McDonald’s hot apple pie, the packaging would announce, “Caution: filling is hot.” Then, I’d bite into that tube of fried hell with gusto and shear the skin of my tongue. I never heeded that warning … Probably says a lot about who I am today, a middle aged fool with fewer taste buds than other middle aged fools.

    Like

    1. Tom (Aquatom1968) avatar

      I always took that to mean the filling was hot – as in good… nice.
      Well, actually LA, I didn’t, I knew very well what it meant after almost losing half a lip and half of my thigh eating one. They know the risks and they still sell them!

      Like

      1. lameadventures avatar

        Did you bite into one that went all over the place and scalded you while wearing shorts? I only sheared off the skin of my tongue and the roof of my mouth. Those pies are torture devices.

        Like

        1. Tom (Aquatom1968) avatar

          No, I bit into one as you did, and scalded my lip, and then dropped the pie onto my thigh out of shock, where some of the filling ran. I’m sure they’d still be as hot after a good few hours… the thing is you just have to get then finished so they don’t cause any more harm…

          Like

  6. Diane Henders avatar

    I like your vision of “irregular” stops. Wouldn’t that make driving more interesting? And congratulations on your big win – don’t spend it all in one place, now. 🙂

    Like

    1. Tom (Aquatom1968) avatar

      Thanks, Diane! 🙂
      Every once in a while it would make the drive more interesting, but if everyone was at it, we’d all be looking out for someone who is shimmying to a halt or something!
      As for the win, well, I’m, it’s, ah, yes. The money’s spoken for, that’s all I can say right now…

      Like

  7. europasicewolf avatar

    You definitely need to take notice of the signs that are supposed to be leading you to Meringue! Even more so the ones that suggest untoward goings on may be about to happen in your bathroom!!! And it’s always good to read the signs about your hair gel or it could have catastrophic consequences!

    Like

    1. Tom (Aquatom1968) avatar

      Even following the signs doesn’t help with Meringue, Icewolf! Goodness knows where those signs will lead me.
      The bathroom, I think, does give a sign that something is about to occur, usually a second or two after the occurrence, so I may need to work on the timing with that one a little.
      And as for the hair gel… well, there are catastrophic consequences with it and without it… either way, I only see the sign just before leaving through the door… I simply have to grin and bear them! 😀

      Like

  8. kateshrewsday avatar

    It starts with a small drip and ends with a great torrent, Tom 🙂 Congratulations on that £3.30.

    Like

    1. Tom (Aquatom1968) avatar

      Thanks, Kate… It was gone before I had even noticed it!
      I’ve put £4.00 on for tonight’s Euromillions as well, the top prize is still the same I believe. Will I be writing about my thrust into the world of the wealthy, my surprise at winning £3.30 twice in the same week… or something else?

      Only time will tell!

      Like

  9. Tony McGurk avatar

    Gosh… Good imagination Tom. Trucks in front of me just boringly (is that a real word???) stop or go.

    Like

    1. Tom (Aquatom1968) avatar

      Hello Tony… and thanks for your comment!
      They usually just stop and go with me, but the other day I got caught up in the moment… and when that happens, anything can happen!
      Oh, and boringly is a real word! 😀

      Like

Leave a reply to kateshrewsday Cancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.