Emma's Universe

There are moments from our lives we cannot remember at all.Entire days.Weeks.Months.Maybe even years that have become blurry.We know we lived them.We woke up.Ate breakfast.Went places.Talked to people.Worked.Laughed.Worried.Made decisions.Came home.Went to sleep.

We are constantly encountering people in the middle of their stories.The cashier who seems distracted.The driver who doesn't move when the light turns green.The coworker who is unusually quiet.The person who cancels at the last minute.The stranger who doesn't smile back.The employee who makes a mistake.The friend who hasn't called.The person who responds too sharply.We see the moment.And almost instantly...our minds begin writing the explanation.They're rude.They're careless.They're inconsiderate.They're lazy.They're angry.They're unreliable.They're ignoring me.They're having an attitude.Maybe.Or maybe we have just walked into minute seventeen of a story that began years ago.

There are people who receive a certain kind of phone call.The problem phone call.Something happened.Something broke.Someone needs advice.A decision has to be made.A situation has become complicated.And somewhere, somebody thinks:Call them.They'll know what to do.

Human beings have spent thousands of years trying to make life more predictable.And for very good reasons.We learned to predict seasons so we could grow food.We developed calendars so we could organize time.We created maps so we could find our way.We studied weather.Built roads.Developed schedules.Invented clocks.Created systems.Recorded information.Calculated risks.Prediction helped us survive.And today, we are extraordinarily good at it.Before leaving home, we can know how long the drive will take.We can see traffic before encountering it.We can check the weather by the hour.We can read the menu before arriving at a restaurant.Look at photographs of the food.

We may be the most communicative generation in human history.Think about how many ways someone can reach you.Text message.Email.Social media.Direct message.Group chat.Video call.Voice message.Comments.Notifications.And, occasionally, the increasingly suspicious event known as an actual phone call.We exchange words constantly.

When we were children, we did something extraordinary.We did things for absolutely no reason.We drew pictures that nobody was going to buy.We sang songs despite having no recording contract.We danced without wondering whether anyone was watching.We built things that served absolutely no practical purpose.We collected rocks.Climbed trees.Made up games with rules that changed every fifteen minutes.We rode bicycles without tracking distance.We ran without measuring our pace.We played in water without calling it aquatic fitness.We created entire imaginary worlds that disappeared when dinner was ready.

There was a time when waiting meant waiting.You stood in line.You sat in a doctor's office.You waited for a friend to arrive.You drove somewhere.You walked down the street.You sat outside for a few minutes.And sometimes...nothing happened.There was no screen in your hand.No notification demanding your attention.No endless stream of information waiting to entertain you.There were simply moments in which you were alone with your surroundings and your own thoughts.

There is a word we use constantly.More.More money.More success.More space.More recognition.More followers.More opportunities.More experiences.More growth.More.Human beings have always reached for more.And perhaps...That desire is one of the reasons civilization exists.Someone wanted to travel farther.Build higher.Understand more.Live longer.Create something that had never existed before.

When we hear the word courage...We often imagine something dramatic.A firefighter running toward a burning building.A soldier protecting others.Someone rescuing a stranger.A person standing before thousands of people and taking an extraordinary stand.And those things certainly require courage.But perhaps...Most courage doesn't look like that.Perhaps courage is usually much quieter.No audience.No applause.No dramatic music playing in the background.Sometimes...Courage is simply getting out of bed and trying again.

There is a moment almost everyone has experienced.You are having a disagreement.You are explaining your position.You have examples.You have evidence.You are absolutely convinced you are right.Then...The other person says something.And somewhere inside your mind...A tiny voice whispers..."Oh."Perhaps...They have a point.