A Comma, A But and Moving Forward

A Comma, A ‘But’ and Moving Forward

We’ve all been there: You’re just moving along through your day when something unrelated to what you’re doing in the moment catches your attention, makes you take a breath and speaks to your heart and mind just enough to make you reconsider the struggles you are experiencing in life.

Several Sundays ago, my son was driving while I was enjoying looking at the colors of the evening sky from the passenger-side window. The clouds had a dark blue hue against the shaded light blue and white sky and the sunset filled the spaces in between with pink and orange coloration. I was commenting on how pretty the sky looked when my attention shifted upwards to the moon. I exclaimed, “The moon looks like a comma!” and I instantly felt like a gift had been placed in my hands. We’ve all seen a crescent moon a thousand times and possibly acknowledged it but kept it moving. This particular evening it was speaking to me differently…giving me some encouragement. I started thinking about what a comma does in a sentence and how a ‘but’ often is used after a comma. A comma is used to continue a thought. It can be used to shift or contrast the thought in a sentence. The moon seemingly mimicking a comma was pushing me to pause for some reflection on my most recent thought processes.

 A couple of days before on Friday I had taken some personal time off to get a couple of errands done and take in a movie in the middle of the day. I was looking forward to disconnecting from world for a bit and decompressing so I could glide smoothly into my weekend. My plans were diverted when I left home that morning to get my first errand done before getting an oil change when my engine light came on and my car started shaking. A bit of panic set in and I pulled over on the side of the street to quickly get my thoughts together. I was afraid that my car wouldn’t make it anywhere, but I knew the auto shop was only 7 minutes away so I decided to take a chance, turn on my hazard lights and drive my car in for the oil change and have my engine checked. As the panic began to dissipate and I got closer to the auto shop, disappointment made its way in. Car troubles are always a bummer and this wasn’t the first time that I took planned personal time off from work to do some things that I enjoy and my plans were interrupted. This pivot didn’t only affect my plans for the day; it would impact the next two weeks. I spent the next few hours stressing over anticipated repair costs and how and if I would be able to do my job through the following week.

 I called my mom so that I could vent and she helped me look past the issue at hand to see things in a more positive aspect. My engine light was on, BUT the repair could end up being something minor. I may have to buy another car, BUT I have more than one option to consider while car shopping. I’m unable to drive my car right now which affects my ability to do my job, BUT my son is willing to let me use his car when I need it for work. And, thank goodness I renewed my AAA membership! Just like “a comma and the word ‘but’ work together to shift the direction of a sentence by signaling a contrast, exception, or pivot in thought” when reading, they can do the same when applied to life’s circumstances. For years I’ve heard the phrase, “Nothing matters except what comes after the but”.

Ain’t it funny how punctuation and a conjunction can become a metaphor for how we navigate life’s unexpected turns. The moon and the ‘but’ were the plot twist I never knew I needed, pushing me to turn the page and look at things in a different light while giving me the grace and space to embrace the pivot and change my mindset.

“If you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.” – Dr. Wayne Dyer