In a perfect world, we’d have no crime, we’d have no poverty, we’d always have enough for our needs, and we’d always enjoy what we do. The weather would be perfect (I know, I shouldn’t use the same word to describe the word I’m talking about…), we wouldn’t have to worry about the cost of things like gas, housing, utilities, and such…computers would always work, cell phone calls would never drop, and…well, we would all be able to live a comfortable life. However, while that does sound enticing and I’m sure we’ll get to that point sometime, I’m not sure that a perfect world would help us grow strong and give us the fortitude to carry on – a perfect world could make us a bit complacent. Don’t get me wrong, it would be great to live in a perfect world because if we did, I’d have my Diner open by now.
No, I’m not open yet, and I do find that a bit discouraging. My ‘first’ thoughts on when I wanted to be open was by Thanksgiving…of 2010. Well, notice today’s date – we are in September of 2011 (actually, Sep. 11, 2011 so a side note of a moment of silence to all those that lost their lives on that day…………………………………………………………..and a heart-felt thank-you to all those that tried to do what they could to help those in need that day and to those who continue to do so today).
Anyway, my open dates that I wanted were, as noted earlier, by Thanksgiving of 2010, then by early March, then by April 21 (BYU Graduation), then May, then by July 4, then August, September…. Why haven’t I opened yet? – I could say because we don’t live in a perfect world but that may be taking the easy way out. There is some truth to that though – we ‘don’t’ live in a perfect world and because of that, there are some struggles, maybe some missed opportunities, maybe some bad luck or bad timing…I know one thing…I don’t have all the answers. That reminds me of a line from a movie when ‘Rudy’ was trying to seek for answers “Son, in 35 years of religious study, I have only come up with two hard incontrovertible facts: there is a God, and I’m not Him” – by the way, that’s a great movie.
So, I’ve missed all the dates so far that I’ve wanted to be open…I could conclude then that we in-fact do not live in a perfect world. There have been some setbacks along the way as I’m still fighting through one of the last major hurdles. I will finish the race though…I’m too far along to not finish. How far along? Well, we won’t talk about the money aspect of it as I’m already very well committed to a number of loans and such. As for the Diner itself, the construction is just about complete. I’ll be laying the VCT (Vinyl Tile) and the Epoxy floor this week – I hope to be done with that by this time next week, my booths should be completed and in place by the end of this week or next, my cabinets will be in place…just about everything will be in place to be able to open…except for the equipment – that is the major hurdle in trying to secure an equipment lease (mind you, it is an $80,000 equipment package). I had one lender tell me that my lease deal would have been completed in a hear-beat two years ago – I guess I should have decided to do this project two years ago then.
Well, we really don’t live in a perfect world – however, I kind of like the world that we live in. Yes, there are changes that would be good, yes, it would be great if some things were done differently, but aren’t all these things for our experience? We experience opposition every day and that can be a very good thing – it can make us stronger and can give us the determination to keep going. I know people can be defeated by opposition as well – we see and hear about that every day in the news or in lives of those that we know.
A perfect world…no, I’m not open yet and am working hard at getting things in place so I can open as soon as I can (maybe early October??), yes, I’ve hit some roadblocks and setbacks during construction – BUT, I have my health, I’ve been blessed with abilities that have allowed me to do a lot of work that has literally saved me thousands of dollars, I have a roof over my head, and I have friends and family that continue to support me in all that I do. No, it may not be a ‘perfect’ world, but I don’t think I would trade my life or experiences for anything. I’ll get the Diner open – I know I will…which brings me to another great quote from a movie…well, I forget the actual quote, but the context is: “As they often sailed to get to their destinations in the Tongan islands, he would pray for a good tail wind. But someone else taught him that such a prayer, if granted, would actually be detrimental to someone else sailing the opposite direction. Instead, he should pray for a good wind.” So, I will get the Diner open…all in due time…though I wouldn’t mind sooner rather than later.
