My South: Charting a new path, beginning with a bench

I’m coming to another intersection in my life, and I need a good thinking place. 

Some folks reach out to others to help make hard life decisions. I tend to look within.

All this was running through my head one recent weekend. I’d gone to Lowe’s to pick up a heater and some plastic sheeting. We plan to enclose the screen porch. The sheeting and heater will keep the cold winter wind from turning the porch into a fridge, so our tender plants could winter out there.

Outside the Lowe’s entryway was a garden bench. With eyes closed, I could picture it under the oak and hickory trees down by our barn. It would be a perfect thinking place. 

And if I got tired of thinking, I could take a nap. At least, that’s the movie that played in my mind. 

I bought the plastic and the heater for the porch. Before leaving, I stepped back and asked the cashier about the garden bench. It was on sale. I decided to buy it with the money I’ve made writing this column. 

Before she rang up the purchase, she asked if I was a veteran. When I told her I was, she also gave me a veteran’s discount. “Nice,” I thought as I put some of the money back in my pocket.

When I got home, my great-nephews Jordan and Anthony were in the yard playing together. Jordan helped me unload the bench. He’s curiously strong for a 9-year-old. We placed it in the shade and moved it around to a few locations until we found where the feng shui and the afternoon light felt right. Anthony supervised.  

Once the bench was in place, we all sat for a long time in silence. “This is my new thinking bench,” I told the boys. Anthony, who just turned seven, nodded his head as if he understood. Jordan’s mom came down to check on him, and she snapped a picture. I never pass up an opportunity for a photo op with the young’uns I love.

The change I mentioned earlier is my work at the college that I’ve been doing the past three years. Unless something changes, it will end soon. 

I’ll get a chance to practice what I teach when it comes to careers. I’ve learned that life is like a gently flowing river. No matter how hard one tries to hold on, things change. How I react to change can make all the difference.

I plan to continue working, but I want to do work that makes a difference, not just work that makes money. I spent years working for the phone company. The friendships I made while working there are enduring. At times the work was interesting, but I can’t say that I ever got the feeling that it “made a difference.” 

Over the coming few months, I plan to spend some time on the garden bench, reflecting on the things that matter most to me. Hopefully, my thinking time on the bench will help me to set a new course on the river of life.

Rick Watson is a columnist and author. His latest book, “Life Goes On,” is available on amazon.com. Email him at rick@rickwatson-writer.com.