4) Adam’s Light Bulb Moment

Spi had barely crossed the street when she heard footsteps behind her.

"Spi! Hey, wait up!"

She turned. Adam skirted around a car as he ran across the street, tablet tucked under one arm, looking slightly desperate.

"You okay?" she asked.

He stopped, breathing hard. "That thing you said. About assuming it'll work out." He glanced back toward the cafe. "I've been sitting there for ten minutes trying to go back to my spreadsheets, and I can't stop thinking about it."

Spi waited.

"I just..." He ran a hand through his hair. "Do you have a number? Can I call you later? I've got to get to the city for a meeting, but maybe after?"

"I don't have a phone."

Adam blinked. "Everyone has a phone."

"Not everyone." She smiled. "But I'm heading to the city too, actually."

His face lit up. "No kidding? I'm ready to leave right now. You want a ride? We could talk more on the way."

Spi considered for half a second. "That would be lovely."

His truck was exactly what she expected. A blue Ford F-150, ten years old, with a dent in the tailgate and a trailer hitched to the back hauling what looked like a small metal compressor and a coil of thick hose.

"Pressure washing," Adam said, opening the passenger door for her. "Commercial buildings, parking garages, that sort of thing. It's not glamorous, but it pays the bills."

"Barely," Spi said, climbing in.

Adam laughed sheepishly. "Yeah. Barely."

They pulled onto the highway. The morning sun was fully up now, and the world stretched out ahead  - fields, then suburbs, then the first fingers of the city reaching toward the sky.

"So," Adam said after a minute. "That twenty-dollar thing. You really think thinking about something makes it happen?"

Spi watched the trees blur past. "Think of it like this. You're driving to a meeting. You're worried you'll be late. So you grip the wheel tighter, check your phone every thirty seconds, and almost run a red light. Then you're actually late because you missed your turn and had to go 4 blocks out of your way just to get back on track."

Adam nodded slowly.

"Now imagine," Spi continued, "you simply decide you'll arrive on time. Not hope. Decide. You drive normally, you breathe, and when you get there, you're exactly as late or early as you need to be. The difference isn't magic. It's wasted energy."

"So you're saying don't worry."

"I'm saying worry is a choice. And choices create your life."

Adam was quiet for a long moment. Then his phone buzzed. He glanced at it and frowned. "That's weird."

"What?"

"My ten o'clock just canceled. Said he'd reschedule for next week." He paused. "I was dreading that meeting."

Spi said nothing.

His phone buzzed again. "Now my two o'clock moved to three. That actually works better." Another buzz. "And I just got a text from a guy I quoted six months ago. He says he's ready to move forward. Wants me to come by today. In the next hour if possible."

Adam looked at Spi. "This is insane."

"Is it?" She smiled out the window.

They drove in silence for a while. The city grew closer. Billboards. Traffic. The smell of asphalt and exhaust.

Adam drove directly to his first appointment and pressed a $20 into her hand, asking if she’d mind getting a couple coffees.  As he met with the guy Spi ducked into a coffee shop and ordered another buttered coffee, this time from a barista who was in the know.  She carried the coffees back to the truck just as Adam was finishing up and they drove to a nearby park and pulled up under a tree.  As they walked the trail they passed a man sitting on a bench, barking angrily into his phone.  “What do you mean canceled?!  They can’t cancel! I’m already behind schedule and I need that garage pressure washed before Friday!”  

As they walked by, Spi slowed down and gave Adam a sideways glance.  “You gonna take it?” she asked mischievously. 

“Take what?”

Spi rolled her eyes.  Dang these humans could be so thick!

“The job!”

Now Adam was really confused.  “What job?”

“Adam!  We just walked by a man who’s pressure washer guy canceled last minute!”

“Ohhhh….” his face lit up as the light bulb went on!  He immediately turned around and started walking back toward the man on the bench.

“Excuse me,” Adam said.  “I couldn’t help but overhear that you’re in need of someone to do pressure washing right away.  I can help you out, if you like.”

The man looked stunned!  “Um-m-m yeah,” he stuttered.  “My guy canceled on my this morning.  Last minute. Big job that has to be done before Friday.”

“No problem,” Adam smiled like a man with a secret.  I’ve got a couple hours before my next appointment and I’d be happy to go with you right now and check out the job. I can get started myself after my appointments this afternoon and have my crew out to finish the job first thing in the morning.

“You’re a life saver!”  The man breathed an audible sigh of relief.  “I’m Conner,” he said.  They shook hands and walked back toward Adam’s truck.  

Spi met them there, smiling.  “Hey Adam, I’ve got to go meet some friends, it’s been a lovely morning!”

Adam smiled back as his eyes met hers, the smile of a man who holds a secret.  He leaned over and whispered in her ear, "I don't know what you are. But thank you."

Spi kissed him on the cheek and said lightly, "You did the work, Adam. I just reminded you to stop fighting the current."

As Spi walked down the sidewalk, the city hummed around her. Tall buildings, buses, horns, the distant wail of a siren. People in a hurry. She loved it already!

"Will I see you again?" Adam called after her.

Spi kept walking. Raised one hand high over her shoulder and waved without looking back.

"Maybe!" she said. "The universe likes repeats!"

And then she disappeared into the crowd, leaving Adam standing next to his truck with a full schedule and a head full of questions he couldn't quite form.