A Time and Place for Everything

I have always been told that there is a TIME and PLACE for everything. This has always intrigued me. Mostly because, whenever I was reminded of this gem, I was being chastised for doing something wrong. So I learned the benefits of timing and of placement.

Like you don't play touch football in the church basement. I can still feel the ear twist as I was led down the corridor, being lectured to, "There's a time and place for everything, young man!"

Or the time I was eight years old and was caught kissing Marian Hilliard on her front porch. Her father told me to go home and shouted after me as I hurried down the front walk, "There's a time and place for everything, young man."

After a while I didn't need anyone to point this out to me. If something wasn't working or didn't seem quite right, I would question whether my timing or my placement was off.

Like the time with Wanda in the Volkswagen. I still think the timing was perfect. It was the placement of the gearshift that was giving me problems.

Or, one time I thought I found the perfect place, but my timing was, shall we say -- premature.

So I was wondering how this would apply to other things. Like automobiles. I've always heard that getting the timing right on the motor is very important. But, oddly enough, people rarely talk about its placement.

Or airplanes. How can a non-stop flight be on time? Or delayed for that matter?

Or weddings. It is very important to be on time for your own wedding but you have to wonder what life would have been like if you had been standing one girl down at the time.

Or dying. Elvis taught us that everyone has an appointed time; but placement provides dignity.

Time and Place are like the mischievous twin offspring to Murphy's Law. Murphy claims if it can go wrong -- it will. His children say if it can go wrong -- it will at the worst possible time and if it can go wrong - it will in the worst possible place.

Like the time I went off the high dive at the class picnic and lost my swim trunks in front of everyone I knew. Murphy and his demonic twins were working overtime, that day. Everyone laughed and I was embarrassed.

But something good may have come of that long ago incident. It may have actually planted the seed of nudity in my brain. Recently, I've been spending a lot of time without my swim trunks in front of everyone I know... and as it turns out, everyone was right: there is a time and a place for everything... and I've found it.