Simple tasks far too often reveal unexpected obstacles. Last Saturday, my dad helped me make some essential repairs on my 1995 Saturn. When we tore apart the knuckle joint to replace the wheel bearings, I learned very quickly why the shop quoted me $250 to do it. Despite finding a video showing two country yokles who managed it in what appeared to be a relatively easy fashion, we realized they got lucky. Everything that could go wrong did, and eventually we went over to the junk yard to pull a different knuckle joint with functional bearings from a different 1995 Saturn. I still have no idea how exactly you get the parts off that we couldn't get off, even though we did essentially what those two knuckle heads on youtube did, and I appreciate the cost quoted now. Next time, I'll accept the price and demand it in writing... Even then, it was difficult to procure a replacement knuckle joint. They put the cars up on welded rims to make it easier to get underneath, but it means you have no leverage to loosen the nut holding the wheel hub assembly together. We had basically one shot, and because my dad is a hero, the car is back on the road, and it's quieter than ever.
When we face unexpected obstacles, it pays to turn to someone who knows what they are doing, especially if they know what they are doing. All too often, we rely on ourselves, refuse to ask for help, and insist that things are fine. When times get tough, we push away the people who are interested in, willing to, and capable of helping us. Especially in things that really matter in life, we don't look to older, wiser, smarter, more skilled or even divine sources of help because of our pride, because we don't want to appear weak and incapable. I know that especially in Vegas it doesn't make me look competitive if I don't have all the answers or do everything myself. Then again, admitting my reliance on a Savior and my willingness to be taught hasn't earned me the respect of people my own age.
When we face unexpected obstacles, they constitute learning opportunities. My dad was willing to help tackle this because he has never tried it. His suburban is the only car he ever bought new, and none of the other cars he owned ever had this many miles or this much wear, so it was a new challenge. He likes to work on cars, to try and fix things. In addition to his "love language" this is his hobby, and I think he'd do it for a living if he thought it paid enough. Each step presented new opportunities to try something new, to apply knowledge and ultimately to pick a better technique. What the hillbillies made it seem takes two hours tops took us eight, and we didn't see them do some of the steps, and we still never actually got the old parts separated. After finals, I'll go over to the autotech folks and ask them questions, and maybe they'll even help me get the old bearing assembly off and reaffirm my confidence if it turns out it's no so easy as the internet makes it appear.
When we face unexpected obstacles, often they provide a chance to do something completely unexpected that works just as well if not better. My dad and I thought we'd simply follow the example of some bumbling nincompoops. After all, if they can do it, then we can too. Fate however threw us a different pitch, showing us anew the difference between skill and luck, forcing a change. Completely replacing the knuckle joint, replete with already installed bearings, allowed us to skip all the work of hitting things with a hammer, making sure they were level, and not dorking up a part. It was actually easier to do, the same cost, and even if I end up having to go get ANOTHER knuckle joint from one of the other four saturns at the junk yard, I can probably achieve it in an hour or two tops. It's so much nicer to find an easy way to do a difficult task.
When we face unexpected obstacles, it helps us appreciate and value things we take for granted. Next time the bearings go out, if someone quotes me $250, i know from personal experience to agree, get it in writing, and then laugh all the way to the bank. Although it's entirely possible that it's easier with the correct tools, this is also the first time I've EVER replaced the bearings in almost 300,000 miles, so the odds of needing the tools again is low. When you pay someone you essentially pay for their expertise. I give away tons of free advice, free labor, and other types of free assisstance, but that works because it's not my livelihood. After that, I have another job that pays all my bills so that I can be free with my other intellectual capital. I took for granted that it was just another easy fix, and I took for granted just how many decades those bearings lasted. Now that the car's quiet, I wonder if the bearings have been bad for a long time or if something else was wrong with the assembly which went away when I swapped out the entire lot.
The simple fact of life is that life isn't really all that simple. As soon as you become an adult, you discover that adults really aren't as smart and capable as you think. Many of them are winging it, making it up as they go, and some of them are totally clueless. When we were teenagers, we thought we knew everything, and then the truly wise among us admit and learn as they grow older that they are otherwise. I know that my life in general hasn't turned out any way like I expected. Although my sister would tell you that I'm playing the cards that I was dealt very well, the hands are not very good sometimes, and sometimes even when I play well, I don't have anything to show for it. I know that I live a good life, that I had good opportunities, and that things really are well, even when I take them for granted. I appreciate the chances to learn about myself, to learn about new people, to go places and see things that i never planned to because I am glad of some of the unexpected friends I made. I keep appealing to my Father God for help handling, wisdom understanding, and solutions altering my familial circumstance. I know that, even if things don't turn out as I hope, something else might happen that works better and is more satisfying than I ever imagined. Each job, each house, each woman I seriously date, and other aspects of my life continue to resound with upgrades and improvements. God knows what is really good and necessary for me. For now, at least, He understands that this is better than the alternatives, and except in the case of one unfortunate event, I agree in hindsight that He was wise and thank Him that things didn't turn out the way I thought they would.
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