Starting Out: Midday Lessons
- Jo Landolfo
- Dec 27, 2025
- 2 min read
It was still early in the day — early enough to choose rather than react. Heading west meant starting early and ending early, long before the sun dropped low and turned the windshield into a wall of glare. A resting spot had already been considered. Not chosen yet — just held in mind.
She stopped for fuel before the tank was low. That mattered.
The gas station wasn’t a travel center. Just a small place along the way. A few pumps. Faded signs. Bright midday light that didn’t quite reach the edges of the lot.
Nothing obvious was wrong.
And yet, something didn’t line up.
She stayed in the vehicle.
The inner alarm didn’t shout. It never does. It was a quiet pause — the kind that asks you to notice instead of explaining. She remembered a line from the book she’d been reading during the Twelve Days of Christmas: urgency clouds judgment.
She didn’t need proof. She didn’t need a reason that sounded good out loud.
She left.
Nothing dramatic happened — and that was the lesson.
Sometimes safety looks like staying seated. Sometimes it looks like choosing a different place. Sometimes the win is simply noticing early enough to move on without consequence.
Later, when the engine was off and the day had settled, she wrote about it. Not about danger — about awareness. About trusting herself while the sun was still high and options were still open.
Starting out isn’t about knowing everything. It’s about learning to pause, observe, and honor the quiet signals that keep you steady.
Reflection:
What did I notice today that I might have missed before?
When was the last time I listened the first time?
How does my intuition feel when I’m not rushed?
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