“I could see now that somewhere along the way I had appointed myself the General Manager of the Universe. My attempt to control everything and everybody had to change or I was never going to be at peace with myself or with the rest of the planet.”

– excerpt from The Napkin, the Melon & the Monkey.

Yury Luzhkov, the Mayor of Moscow is at it again — trying his hand at being the General Manager of the Universe. In 2002 he tried to reverse the flow of the River Ob so that water could be diverted to a drought stricken area of the country. It didn’t work.
This year the Mayor plans to stop the snow from falling in the City of Moscow. It’s expensive to remove, he says, and it’s downright inconvenient. So, he has hired the Russian Air Force to spray the sky with chemicals so the snow misses Moscow and falls someplace else.  Experts say this idea won’t work either.
You probably have your own list of things you’d like to change. Here are some of mine. If I could, I would:

* Be 25 years young again.
* Get the paper delivery person to throw the paper within reach of my back door every morning.
* Make cell service, cable, internet access and electricity free for everyone.
* Reduce the months of cold weather in Minnesota from 6 to 3.
* Be upgraded to First Class every time I have to fly.
* Raise my recently departed dog, Layla, from the dead.
* Eradicate World hunger in my lifetime.

Although it’s entertaining to think about, the chances of any of the things on my list happening are zero.
I had an epiphany several years ago and finally resigned from being the General Manager of the Universe.  After experiencing the equivalent of a personal train wreck, I realized how deluded I was in thinking that I could control the behavior of others or live my life absent problems. I finally understood the real truth, put best by Jack Kornfield, “You can’t stop the waves, but you can learn to surf.”
This week catch a wave and enjoy the ride. And to those of you (Mayor of Moscow included) who live in a cold climate — it’s time to get out your snow shovel.