What can happen in a second?

Really, anything can happen in a second. One second from now, I expect to still be sitting on my couch with Grey’s Anatomy on in the background for the fifth day in a row. I expect to hear the click-clacking of my boyfriend’s mechanical keyboard, and the low hum his computer emits steadily. I’m not expecting any conversation, any event, or happenstance to really rock my world within the next second, or hour.

Maybe I’m grateful for that. People all over the world are having their lives made or destroyed within a second. Within a second, your whole life can change.

Maybe a woman was told that she has terminal breast cancer, and she realizes with a panic that her seconds are numbered for the rest of her life. Maybe a man is seconds away from holding his newborn son, changing his life from “man” to “father.” Maybe someone is seconds away from receiving a promotion, or being fired. You can miss the bus or train by a second and miss an important interview. TV shows tell tales of distressed lovers meeting one last time, but miss each other by seconds. Years of building trust and loyalty can be destroyed by poor decision making in one second.

For better or for worse, a second can make or break everything. So maybe today I’m grateful that I know what’s happening next. It’s been a while since I’ve had that.

This is a part of the 642 Things to Write About challenge.

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