June 18 - A Balancing Act

In my last post, I wrote about the balance between adventure and safety. Basically, it is a matter of personal judgment as to whether or not one should take a risk in doing something that is a bit out of one’s comfort zone. Perhaps the result will be success – or it might just be failure and impinge on one’s safety.

There are many degrees of risk taking. The other day I was at a CNIB function. Because of the number of visually challenged people in attendance there were several guides appointed to assist us. When I went to the drink counter to get some coffee, one of these obliging people poured my coffee for me. I was grateful. She also offered to carry the cup back to my seat for me. When I declined the offer, the woman commented on my independent spirit. I felt quite pleased that she had noticed this about me...that is until she added the instruction that I should be very careful not to spill and burn myself.

Carrying the hot coffee was a risk that I felt was worth taking. The coffee wasn’t all that hot and my clothes were washable. The worst that could happen was that I might bump into someone else. I knew that I was going to walk slowly back to my seat and I felt that I could take the chance.

For me, many of life’s little adventures out of my comfort zone seem to involve finding and using public washrooms. Distinguishing between men’s and women’s can be a problem. Upon entering one such washroom in a Walmart, I remember thinking to myself, that the hand wash basins were placed unusually low down. It should have been a give away that I was in the wrong spot!

Then there was the time when I was lost in the campground in Penticton, British Columbia. Half asleep, I had exited the washroom block from the second exit door and didn’t realize my error until I was completely turned around. I have made this same mistake in quite a few instances where the washroom block has entrances and exits at both ends.  

Lyle and I have both learned a few lessons from these experiences. Lyle has learned to give very explicit directions when I wander off on my own and I have learned to follow these directions to the letter. If I am to avoid embarrassment or frustration, I need to stay alert when I engage in these solo excursions.

But what about safety? Where is the cross over point between risk taking and putting one’s safety on the line? Where is the balance?

One instance comes to mind. Lyle and I were moving some furniture and I insisted that I could help with the carrying. The idea of carrying something in front of me restricted my sight to a greater degree than normal. I was carrying the back end of a table when I missed the curve and fell into a culvert. I ended up in a wheelchair for several weeks and then progressed to crutches. It was a painful reminder that my eyes don’t let me do all the things that my head tells me I would like to do.

So, a balance between risk taking and an awareness of personal safety is a fine line. Only experience will help us to judge just where the balance lies. I am still learning.