Years ago I was about to leave a building when I saw an old friend on the other side of the foyer. I was in a bit of a hurry and thought of several reasons not to talk to him. I had other things to do. He had not seen me and would not know that our paths had converged so closely. Stopping to talk was simply not convenient.
But I just had a feeling that I should talk to him, so I walked over, took a seat beside him, and talked with him for quite a while. I told him how much I valued our friendship, and we very much enjoyed our time together. It was one of those intimate and deeply rewarding moments in life.
A few days later he died, and I spoke at his funeral about what a sweet experience our friendship had been for me. How glad I was that I didn't ignore that impression to talk with him days before.
The important opportunities in our lives are often quite inconspicuous. They may present for only a moment or two. They're easy to miss, and missing them is easy to excuse. But they can be life-changing. Look for them. Don't feel guilty or discouraged when you miss them, just keep looking—diligently but not obsessively, which detracts from our feeling of peace. Some of these opportunities are not to do something—not to intrude, not to criticize, not to be impatient—and we need to watch for these as well.
The more we look for these opportunities, the better we'll handle them, and we'll become better equipped to see even more of them.
