Good or Interesting

I realize that when writing a 3 Good things story, it's generally considered "good" to write about "good' things, and that those "good" things are in fact "good". Today, I must confess a brief departure from format and discuss the difference between "good" and "interesting".

If you are ever in a spot where you need to open up a conversation, perhaps one that results in stories or philosophical debate, I can recommend the "Good or Interesting" conundrum. It goes like this...

Would you rather that good things happen to you, or interesting things? Most people will answer "good".


Example of "good thing"
I did a good job paralel parking last night. It was so good, on the left-side, not the right, squeaked in-between cars, and I even stuck the ending just 3 inches from the curb. I had a witness. I took a picture. This was a good thing.

Let's be honest. It's not very interesting and once I showed you the picture, you thought to yourself - "why did he take a picture of his parking job?"

Example of "interesting thing"
The text on his sign reads: "Ninjas killed my family - need money for kung-fu lessons! Good? Hardly, but interesting definitely. My life has been more interesting than good, when it comes to things that happen. That is not to say that those things have not become good over time. I am a firm believer in the Word of God and this particular scripture comes to mind:

Romans 8:28 (GNT)
28 We know that in all things God works for good with those who love him, those whom he has called according to his purpose.

You can follow that link to see it in a variety of versions - but the point here is that - just because you don't like the interesting thing that just happened, God works to turn those into good things. I have stories that start out... kinda rotten. Most every one winds up on the good side eventually.

With that in mind, here are three interesting things that happened, and God turned them into good.

2) I moved from one state to another and changed high schools between my sophomore and junior years. Man, at the time, that was rotten. Now, I'm fortunate to have friends all over the country because of that move. I became more compassionate about people in new places.

3) I've messed up personally and even professionally over the last 20 years or so. No... I'm not going to be specific... but I'm not proud of many things I've said or done over the years. You know what? I've made amends where I can, I've tried to make changes and be a better person. And guess what? That actually works. I am a better guy than I used to be.

1) My own adoption story kinda trumps all my other stories. If you want to read about it, please feel free. Adoption

There are plenty of things that I'm still waiting on the "good" to come out of them. It's possible I'll never know, and possible the good will come to someone else - not to me. That's good too.