I'm a big fan of analogies, and one finally came to me....
Life is a big conveyor belt, truckin' on by as time passes. I was so busy trying to line up everything on the conveyor belt so that the right things would arrive in my life at the right times that I completely missed all the wonderful stuff flying by on the belt! What I should have been doing, and what I intend to do from now on, is pay attention to what's coming by on the belt and decide what I want to incorporate into my life. No more trying to organize the conveyor belt, lol.