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Thu 29 Jun, 2006 03:07 am
One evening my wife phoned and impatiently asked:"What are you doing?,You knew we were having guests for dinner tonight, and you're not even here!"
Though she was upset, I was in the midst of my own frustration over delays at work, and I replied curtly, "Look Naseebah, it's not my fault that you scheduled this dinner. You'll have to figure out how to handle things. I'll come when I can."
As I hung up, I realized that my wife's question had been reasonable. But instead of being understanding, I'd made things worse. If I had been more considerate - if I'd acted out of my love for her instead of reacting to the pressures of the moment - the results would have been different.
When I ask people to name the three most important things in their lives, 95% include "family" or "family relationships" on their lists. About 75% put family first. And when we sense a gap between our vision of a rich family life and the reality of every day, we feel off track.
Could anybody tell me what "feel off track" means, and is it used very often in everyday English? Thanks.
Yes, I'd say it's fairly common to hear that phrase in everyday English - at least in the U.S. it is, I don't know about other English speaking countries.
If you're "on track" you're going in the right direction - you're doing what you want to do/what needs to be done.
If you're "off track" you are preoccupied with something else, you're busy with something else - you're not getting done what needs to be done.
I guess it may be in reference to a train? (then again, maybe not) But that idea works; if the train in on the tracks vs. if the train is off the tracks.
For the example you gave, the people felt "off track" because they were too busy trying to make more money, instead of spending time with family.
Hopefully this helps!
Thank you very much! SneakyBeaky
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