What would you give up to get what you want?

few months ago we were assigned a newspaper section for senior citizens on jobs people held that aren’t common anymore - milkmen, typesetters, grocery delivermen, etc.

After calling around to different nursing homes and assisted living centers in the area, I found a man named Jack Van Es, who used to own a small grocery and would deliver his goods to people in the region.

I called and talked to him, setting up an interview.

After talking with the man, I thought it seemed like he could use a friend who cared about him, so I offered him my e-mail address.

Here it is, going on a year later, and Jack and I are still e-mail pals.

I have really enjoyed talking with this man a few times a week. He has great stories and insights and offers plenty of compliments. It’s nice to be able to take a few minutes and tell someone about your life and to read about theirs.

Recently, Jack and I chatted about the horrible winter weather driving conditions we have traveled through just to get home, to get to a loved one.

I have battled roads that were solid sheets of ice, drifts of snow, white-out conditions to reach home on a college break or to visit my boyfriend when we didn’t live in the same town. I can’t remember a time when I said, “I can’t come. The weather is too bad.”

However, Jack said that often we overlook the dangers in something just to get where we want to go. We don’t realize until afterward that the decision was probably not a good one.

I thought that was an interesting comment. How often in life do we do that? How often do we make concessions to get where we want to go without taking the dangers into account?

This ideal can go beyond driving in bad weather - where you could give up your life trying to see someone. It could apply to giving up family time trying to get a promotion and so much more.

What decisions are you making that are getting where you want to go at any cost?

Much of the time we think of our desired end result without taking into consideration what could happen if we didn’t get what we wanted.

While driving through the snow, I have seen plenty of cars in ditches. However, I have never had a serious incident. Sometimes I act like I am invincible, when I should be acting with care and caution.

What about you?