I promised I would not write this particular blog. I promised my niece Stacy, and I promised myself. Who needs to hear about some pathetic mishap on another road trip? Nope, I wasn’t going to write about this one… that is until I figured out what the real message of this particular near catastrophe was.

The sad part of the story goes like this. Rob finishes his seminar in New York. Rob meets up with family. Rob and family take the Long Island Railroad to Long Beach to spend a few days with their friends. Rob helps family with their luggage and finds his laptop bag with the most important items he possesses is no longer on the train. In 25 years of travel Rob has never had a lost bag, let alone one that has kept in his possession. Rob is devastated, but that’s not the story.

The happy part of the story goes like this. Thirty minutes later, while being consoled by his friend, and waiting for the police to file a report, Rob’s phone rings. It turns out someone saw the laptop bag away from the other bags, and after asking the person closest to it, (who was not Rob,) decides to “protect it”, removes it from the train and takes it home. Twenty minutes later Rob and his laptop bag with the most important items he possess are back in his hands again. Rob is elated, but that’s not the story either.

Oh, and I wasn’t just happy; I was beside himself with jubilation. As a matter of fact, I was happier than I’ve been for quite some time. Wasn’t having finished a seminar good enough? No industry has been hit harder than the seminar and travel industry, and yet here I was finishing my best month of consulting in a year and a half without any real celebration or fanfare.

Wasn’t hooking up with my wife and daughter for a nice trip good enough? Spending time away with your loved ones usually puts a smile on most people’s faces including mine, and yet I was almost going through the motions of affection to both.

Wasn’t going to see two of our closest friends on the face of the earth in their beautiful waterfront home good enough? These are friends we have seen at least a couple times a year for over 25 years, and always have a nice time when we are together, and yet I was focused on the long train ride to see them. It was a 45 minute train ride.

All these wonderful blessings and yet having my laptop bag missing for about thirty minutes – and then found is what it took to make me truly happy. And that’s the story. Why is it that we practically sleep walk our way through things that we should rejoice in and are not truly happy until something is taken away… and given back to us? How often do we take stock in our good health after a health scare? How often do we thank our lucky stars for the job we have after our name does not appear on a list of layoffs?

I’m happy to have been reunited with my laptop bag, computer, air mouse, keys, cords, books, sun glasses, credit cards, and more. However, I’m even happier that I not only figured out what the real story was, I’m going to keep that message front and center.