Earlier this year, my wife and I visited Los Nevados National Natural Park in Colombia.
Los Nevados National Natural Park, Photo by Rob Symonds.
Driving the park roads on ATVs, we encountered rain and wind. At one point, hail started to fall, leaving red marks on my face wherever it struck me. We ended up soaking wet and chilled to the bone, but loved every minute of it.
The weather started to clear after the ATV ride ended and we decided to explore the far edge of the park in our car. But first, my wife wanted to take pictures of the volcano, Nevado del Ruiz, which had not been visible earlier. It seemed to me like the weather was getting better as the day went on, so I pushed to drive around the park and take pictures later.
Driving the length of the park and back took much longer than expected. When we returned, the weather had shifted again. Dark clouds and mist filled the sky, obscuring the volcano, making it impossible to see and photograph.
When we chose to put off taking pictures it didn’t feel like a decision of any consequence. But as time went on, my wife realized that taking the pictures was really important to her. And now she regrets the missed opportunity. We may never visit that park again. And even if we do, we may not have the same clear weather and nice light we had that morning. You never really know.
Now when we get into that kind of situation where there is something we really want to do–and can do, responsibly–we don’t put it off. You simply can’t know if you’ll ever have the same chance again.
* An alternative title might be: Learn to listen to your wife next time but it just doesn’t sound as punchy, does it?