listening to that tiny voice

[Chris McKaskell]

I suspect everyone has had experiences with that tiny voice inside them that occassionally says things like:"Oh, I wouldn't do that...", or "Don't go down that street - it's a little too dark...", or "Hmmm, best to stay away from that guy."

And who knows what would have happenned if you hadn't heeded that advice.

Or maybe you didn't heed it and lived to regret not listening?

But what about the times you listened and you found yourself doing things that would not have occurred to you otherwise? Things that you were able to verify as having a positive outcome very soon afterward.

For instance, a few years ago I was driving home and saw a drunk-looking man sitting by the side of the road. Everyone was ignoring him - as you do. Then 'that voice' chimed in and suggested maybe things weren't as they appeared.

I swung the truck off at a side street, parked it and walked back over to the man.

Turned out he was diabetic and was in the middle of a crisis: he had missed his shot and hadn't eaten well and was in shock - heading towards coma, I suspect.

Got him all sorted out, but who knows what might have happenned if I, like everyone else on that busy street, had simply written him off as another downtown drunk and ignored him?

Another one: while walking past a play ground once I noticed a kid climbing on the play equipment. There were lots of kids, and lots of nannies. I don't know why my attention was attracted by this kid. 'The voice' suggested I walk over to the equipment just beneath the kid -- as soon as I got there the kid fell head first off the top platform, landed perfectly in my arms and, as an extention of that catch, I simply set him gently on his feet.

The nannies were all in a group chatting. No one saw any of this. No one noticed. I kept walking. The kid watched me for a moment then went back to playing.

I have very little doubt that if his tragectory had continued un-modified he would have landed square on the noggin and been, very likely, severely injured.

Weird, huh?

Any body else have any stories where they listened to 'that voice'? Or didn't?