This little tale came to me as I once again worried too much about things going wrong.
Once again, Chuck found himself in the cross-hairs of Fate.
It never failed. Whenever Lady Luck graced him with unexpected fortune, Fate snatched it from his hands.
Like the time Chuck won $10,000 in the lottery. As soon as he received the money, the transmission in his old Chevy conked out.
His friend Marvin laughed. “You should be thanking your lucky stars for that check. That old clunker had no life left. Be glad you had cash to buy something newer.”
Chuck fumed inside. Marvin was lucky. He had money.
Last week, when a new job opening was posted, a golden opportunity that offered more money and less hours, Chuck thought his luck had turned. The interview went great with a tentative offer made.
But Fate stepped to ruin everything. The offer was rescinded, something about a bad reference.
“Marvin, when you talked to that guy about me, you didn’t say anything…. bad… did you?”
“Man, I would never talk down about you. But remember that project last fall? I hold him it wasn’t your fault it went over-budget, that there were extenuating circumstances. You don’t think that hurt you any, do you?”
Sighing, Chuck realized he would never catch a break.
Later that day, as Chuck walked to his car, he noticed the flashing lights of an ambulance. Lying on the ground, with paramedics performing CPR, was Marvin. The words ‘heart attack’ hummed through the crowd.
“Poor Marvin,” said Chuck, not realizing he was speaking out loud. “I hope he will be OK.”
A man next to him turned and smiled. “I wouldn’t count on it, my friend. Karma is a bitch.”
Redbuds and Roserocks 