Exit Now

Chapter 26

EXIT NOW

As covered in the last chapter, most relationships reach certain “forks in the road.” As two people evolve, they don’t always grow in the same direction. While one person reaches for the light, the other person might choose to remain in the dark. It’s important to consistently take inventory of your relationships, in order to determine which passengers are best equipped for your journey.

                Roughly two years ago, I was involved in a love-relationship with a passenger who wasn’t “equipped for my journey.” There were numerous warnings signs that indicated the relationship had the potential to be a destructive one. I chose to ignore all those warning signs, and ended up dealing with the consequences of not leaving after the first “red flag.” Without getting into specific “red flags,” let me share an interesting story, regarding this relationship:

We decided to take a road trip from Alabama to Virginia. I had already noticed a few “red flags” and I was contemplating how I wanted to move forward (or not) with the relationship. On the way back to Alabama (as I’m going over all this in my head) I noticed a very nice luxury car in front of me. The plates read: XXX-666. The letters weren’t actually “XXX,” but the numbers were 666.

                Over the course of the next 30 minutes, the car kept passing me. You know how interstate driving is; one person finds a “fast lane” and takes it. A few moments later, the other person finds a “faster lane” and zooms past. I’d pass the car, forget about it, and then he’d pass me—forcing me to look at his license plate.

                I looked over at my girlfriend and half-jokingly said, “God must be trying to tell me something.”

                After the “666 car” passed me several times, I finally decided to get off the interstate. In Larry David fashion, I held my fist in the air and shouted, “I’m gonna get rid of you once and for all, Satan!” My girlfriend (and Grandpa Bill, who was with us) both laughed.

                I never saw the “666 car” again.

                Being the spiritual-weirdo I am, I looked for the “hidden meaning” in the experience. I thought to myself, Okay, here I am trying to determine whether or not this relationship is in my best interest, because I’ve already seen several “red flags,” and the “666 car” keeps popping into my awareness. Not to mention, she’s in the car with me! Is this God’s way of telling me that if I continue my relationship-journey with this girl, I’ll continue to experience negative (Satanic) consequences?

                My decision to exit the interstate removed the “666 car” from my life. Had I also chosen to exit the relationship at that point, I would’ve saved myself a lot of frustration and pain. Over the course of the next couple of months, the relationship didn’t get any better. I found myself experiencing the emotions of anger and jealousy—due to her deception. At this phase of my life, those emotions indicate that I’ve lost touch with my life-path and my purpose. Any relationship that causes me to fall out-of-sync with what’s most important—has to be terminated. And that’s what eventually happened, but it should’ve happened much sooner. It would’ve saved us both a lot of time, frustration and heartache.