The Butterfly Effect

As much as I love order and control, planning and organization, there is always one factor fluttering through my brain that I am consciously aware of -- the butterfly effect.  Are you familiar with it?  It's a theory that states that a butterfly flapping its wings in one part of the world will result in a tornado in another part of the world.  Similar to the ripple effect or maybe the domino effect, it's just another one of those reasonings that every little action causes a big chain reaction.

 Like maybe that grocery receipt that unknowingly falls out of your pocket.  Maybe it becomes the scrap paper that a young woman writes her email address on to give to the man she met in line at the store.  Maybe they start dating, maybe they fall in love, they get married, they become parents to the kid that will eventually discover a cure for cancer. 

Or how about when you're cleaning your garage and discover a deflated old basketball stuffed in the corner.  You think about just tossing it, but instead put it into the pile for Goodwill.  That ball ends up in the hands of a youngster who now, with a basketball of his own, can practice his jump shot at the park whenever he wants.  And he practices so much he makes the high school team, and then gets recruited for college ball.  That old roughed up ball from your garage paves the way for a kid who once could only dream of becoming a doctor or a teacher or an engineer.

I've got one more.  A guy sitting on the sand in Myrtle Beach watches his young grandchildren playing in the surf and he's thinking, 'This is a good life. No meetings, no reports, no deadlines'.  So after some thought, he goes back into the office and announces he's retiring early.  This leads to lots of meeting, lots of brainstorming, lots of shifting of staff and talent.  The CFO calls one of her staff members, he's in India at the time, and talks with him about the recent turn of events, which leads to a text message to his wife.  "Spending more time in the US", her phone screen reads.  She is at British trivia night with friends, and doing terribly to boot.  "Oh hell!," she exclaims showing her friends the message. "More trips to the US for him."  They order another round and manage to come in dead last at trivia.  A few days later he arrives home from India, plops down on their bed, stretches and proclaims, "It's so good to be home."  She smiles at him, thrilled he's back safe, but leans against the bedroom door to brace herself for the updated travel schedule.  "So, what is this about you spending more time in the US?".   "I didn't say I was spending more time in the US," he says with emphasis. "We're spending more time in the US."  She cocks her head at him, wanting clarification.  "We're going home, Laura.  I've been promoted.  I'm the new Corporate Controller". 

The butterfly effect in full effect.

We've been detoured again.  But this path will take us back home.  To North Carolina.  In December.