Summary

The author met their spouse at a quiz night in Buckinghamshire after declining to attend a similar event in South London, which led to a significant change in their life.

Abstract

The author recounts a pivotal moment in their life that was the result of a seemingly trivial decision. They used to work in the print and advertising industry and were once invited to a quiz night in South London by a client. Due to a personal aversion to crossing the Thames, a boundary they consider significant, the author declined the invitation but promised to attend a future event north of the river. Subsequently, they were invited to another quiz night, this time in Buckinghamshire, which was north of the Thames. Reluctantly accepting the invitation, the author met their future spouse at the event, profoundly altering the course of their life. The narrative highlights how a small decision can lead to life-changing consequences.

Opinions

The author perceives the Thames as a psychological barrier between North and South London, akin to a tribal divide.
Despite the initial reluctance, the author honored their promise to attend the quiz night, demonstrating a sense of commitment.
The author believes that the refusal to attend the first quiz night and the subsequent agreement to attend the one in Buckinghamshire were pivotal choices that led to meeting their spouse.
The article suggests that chance events and decisions, even those made for seemingly trivial reasons, can have a profound impact on one's life trajectory.

Have you ever had a life changing event?

The word change in lights. Photo by Ross Findon on Unsplash

Has there been a point in your life when a certain action took you in a totally different direction from the way your life was going?

A quick last-minute change of plan that resulted in a life-changing event

My life-changing event came about by my refusing to do something.

Years ago, I worked in the in the print and advertising world. One of my clients used to organise quiz nights in various locations in and around London.

I received a call from this organiser, who asked me to join a team for a quiz in London.

The problem was the venue was in South London.

This meant me driving into the city and crossing the Thames.

For those of you unfamiliar with the North /South London situation, we see the river as a dividing line. It’s a sort of tribal thing.

As an ex North Londoner, I am reluctant to cross the Thames unless I have to, and this quiz venue was too deep into South London for me to want to travel.

For the record, South Londoners have the same feelings about north of the river. In fact, we never refer to the Thames as the river, but the water. We talk about crossing “the water”.

Any way I turned down my friend’s request, but as he seemed so put out, I promised him I would go the next one wherever it was. But it had to be north of the water.

Some weeks later he called again. This time the venue was even further away.

The quiz night was to be held in a small village in Buckinghamshire, some thirty plus miles from where I live.

But it was north of the water. I had no choice but to go.

It was in that village pub I met my wife.

If I had agreed to go to the South London quiz, I may have been able to avoid the Buckinghamshire one.

Then where would I be today?

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