I have written in the past about how satisfying it is to do something new. To go out and create your destiny. What may have been mentioned in between the lines is how difficult that type of activity can be. It’s easy to do nothing and watch life roll by.

Case in point, my latest adventure is rewiring my 1956 Ford Fairlane. Let it be known, I have never, ever wired, or even thought I about wiring a car. An entire car.

After three months of soldering terminals, following the wiring diagram, getting help from friends, and reading the instructions, I was ready to put the car back together. Heck, even taking the gauge pod off the dash was a challenge! We tested all the circuits fixed a few minor grounding issues and ready to put the final assembly back on. The light switch on the dash, just above the key switch has been in and out a couple of times during this procedure. I was getting pretty good at using the needle nose pliers in place of a special tool to install the light switch bezel.

It was all in, and before I bolted the gauge pod in, one final test to make sure the connections are live. I plug in the positive cable on the battery in the trunk, go to the key switch, turn the key and I see a spark under the dash. Hmm. I thought, I pull the dash panel out and inspect, nothing, turn the key again and the dash lights go on. YEAH!

Then I heard the pop, sizzle, and screech as the cabin filled with white smoke!

I ran to the trunk turned off the battery, grabbed the fire extinguisher, stood at the ready as the smoke clears, I realize there was no fire.

Whew! But what happened?

I have to say, it was pretty exciting to know that this months long project was finally over and I can get back in and mash down on the right pedal. My emotional state ran from excitement and joy to utter disappointment, anger, fear and depression. All I could think was about all this work I have done and now back to square one. I told my wife that I can easily go from anger, upset to being grateful and proud that I did the right thing in a time of panic to turn off the power source. It is easy to be angry and upset, but that can lead you down a spiral that would be difficult to come out of. I must, MUST stay in the grateful and proud space in my mind.

This my friends, is the lesson in this long story. A lesson on why, exactly WHY we do things we have never done before, to see things differently, to allow our minds to go into a creative space. A space that allows us to solve problems before they arrive, and have the knowledge to take care of the problem in the event it happens. Sure it’s difficult, but we are not leaves in the stream. We are mighty oaks. Oaks that can withstand these emotional tidal waves. To know in an instant what is best to do. We learn from these instances not only about the task at hand, but how we react. How we respond. This is how we learn to act under pressure. How we solve complex issues and if we can’t foresee a problem, at least we will have a contingency plan.

What near catastrophic thing have you encountered? How has that event prepared you for unforeseen circumstances?

Oh, so what happened? Apparently the carrier for the light switch was just touching the Ignition terminal on the key switch, shorting it out and causing a ton of power to go through the 10awg Ignition wire from the starter solenoid to the key switch. Fortunately, the casing on the Ron Francis Wiring and the quick action to kill the power saved from a total melt down.