According to the doctor, I’m “completely normal now”. Well, at least my cholesterol and triglycerides are. The other good news is that at least one of the measures of diabetes has crossed back into what she called pre-diabetes levels and what I call post-diabetes levels. She liked the rewording. Timing is important. I suspect the timing of my previous visit was important because we caught something when it was easier to change. I’ve seen a lot of fortuitous timing lately, much of it for my friends. It’s a reminder that hard work and due diligence are important, but timing and luck help, too. The frequent question is, do they help enough.

My diabetes diagnosis caused a major freakout moment. So much for eating right and exercising regularly – except that for the last few years, and particularly this last winter, proper diet and exercise dropped off the schedule in an effort to make enough money to pay all of my bills. Some nice timing and a bit of luck brought a surge of work and opportunities, and money. A frugal diet heavily loaded with rice, pasta, and potatoes; plus few free hours and dismal weather; plus heightened stress probably combined to pop my blood sugar numbers into the eye-popping range. The visit to the doctor came after the surge, and after the surge came more free time. Unfortunately, the extra free time came from opportunities falling through – but with very nice compliments and rejections. It is nice to see that diet and exercise can be powerful. Now, it’s time to emphasize meditation, again. While my timing and response may have been good, I suspect there’s more work to do. There’s another blood sugar number that evidently isn’t pre- or post-diabetic. We’ll talk about that at our next visit. (Nice job, Molly Fox.)

One of those opportunities worked out well for a few of my friends. One friend needed funding. Another friend didn’t have it, but maybe knew someone who did, and maybe even knew a potential client. Introductions, handshakes, a few meetings, and add another dose of energy to their multi-million dollar venture. Now, I wonder which of my other friends is in a similar situation. There’s probably room for more. (I’d join in, but I don’t have the six-figure entry fee.) I’d been trying to introduce those two for several years, but the timing was lucky when it needed to be. Until then, a bit of secrecy and discretion will be exercised. Aren’t pronouns great for ambiguous writing?

Some timings seem obvious, and then luck disagrees. I’m a fan of the US’s form of government. It isn’t perfect, but then none are. Rather than simply wave the flag or march in a parade, I decided to read the Declaration of Independence aloud. Just because I could, I decided to record it, too. I made the recording on July 2nd without realizing it was the day the document was generally approved. I actually picked the right anniversary without knowing it. Luck, however, decided that I should redo it on the 4th. Computer problems, connection problems, platform problems kept me busy for two days. Then, starting over on the 4th, everything came together. The recording uploaded without an error, and I received a few compliments. Reading such a document aloud gives weight to every word. Eyes skim.

Just as I was wrangling with recorders and recordings, a friend and fellow blogger, Steve Smolinsky, suggested people read the document, and others. Nice timing. I Liked his post, added a link to my recording, and wondered if the timing was truly coincidental. Maybe, maybe not. I enjoyed the synchronicity.

(By the way, I agree. Whether you read it aloud or just with your eyes, it is a radical and revolutionary document. Some parts echo today. Some parts are great reminders of how far our global society has come.)

As much as I am a fan of the Declaration of Independence (though would like to edit it, as would many) I’m not a fan of the unofficial fireworks that many use to celebrate it. (I’m also curious how many people just think of the 4th of July as a day to hang out a flag, feast, and make things go boom without knowing the history. But, I digress, hence the parentheses. But, hey, it’s my blog.) Every year I dread the barrage because I see it as incendiaries fired out of control. While preparing my property’s defenses (positioning a couple of ladders, watering the roof, getting my safety gear in place), I lucked upon an explosion of color in the sky lit by the biggest fire in the neighborhood, a rose with the Sun shining through the heart of the flower. I needed that then and there.

Timing and luck affect personal finance, too. American society can be somewhat hypocritical. “All men are created equal”, but we know that every individual is born into a life that largely determines how they’ll live. Moving on up is a great ideology, but it isn’t reality. An afternoon bicycle ride (part of my fight against disease and for my health) took me past extremes. Houses where generations have lived by working with what’s on their land. Houses where someone bought the right stock at the right time. And, of course, the great mix that is the reality of the middle.

I’m hearing more people ask about destiny versus control. Is all this turmoil something we can control, or is our situation a destiny created by our history? Such questions seem to be passing from academic to pragmatic. A few of us are even gathering to discuss the unanswerable questions because it helps to literally give voice to the concerns. Considering an idea isn’t as powerful as reading about it which isn’t as powerful as speaking it aloud with others.

Was the American Revolution inevitable? Would it have happened if those men hadn’t signed a piece of parchment?

As in many things, I sit in the middle. Some things like where someone is born strongly affect their lives purely on luck. Some things are in our control. Diet and exercise, and spending habits on a personal level. Hopefully, voting and holding office on a grander scale. The human condition has always had a mix of “assume tomorrow will be like today” and “the only constant is change.”

I’ll keep working, working at finding better work, working out, and working on relaxing in the middle of unsettling times. I’ll also realize that many things are out of my control, and that can be a good thing. I’ll also keep buying lottery tickets – until I win a big enough jackpot, that is. Hey, I could get lucky. It’s about time.