This is the first thing I saw going into the garage at work today.  My son would say, “PONED.”  The car sat there all day like this, the owner completely unaware of what their evening would bring.

What happened?  Bottom line, someone was in a hurry.  The top left is the route people take to leave the garage.  Someone was rushing to get out and pulled that car’s entire bumper off as they clipped the corner.

What do you think they were rushing to get to?  To sit in traffic?  Maybe they had to pick up a child from day care.  Or perhaps they were just hungry and wanted to get home.  My sixth sense says they were on the cell phone.  Either way, they were in Speed Mode, don’t cha think?  Their rushing ruined their car, the innocent party’s car and caused what will be a loss of job time and money for again, someone completely innocent.

I don’t think anyone here can say they haven’t rushed.  We all do it.  “Gotta get out, get the kids for soccer, feed them dinner and then race them back to school for the band concert…”  I have a bunch.  I bet you do to.  But is the rush worth all this?  Cutting a few corners, LITERALLY, will not make or BREAK your schedule, pun completely intended.

I never EVER use my cell phone in that garage.  But many MANY people do.  It is a good reminder to all (yes, I’m going to say it) to “shut up and drive.”  But more than that, we have to remember that life is short.  And we rarely take the time to stop and (inhallleeee) breathe (exhallleeee).

I find that the more I rush, the more stressed I get.  Usually my middle child calls me on it.  “Mom, you need to relax.  Slow down.  Everything will be fine.  Enjoy life!”  He is always my wakeup call.  And he is right.  So I stop what I am doing and breathe.  God didn’t put us on this earth to stress, I guarantee you that.  And He certainly didn’t put us here to clip corners while talking on the cell phone, all in the name of soccer or daycare.

Right now I have a lot going on.  But I am not going to stress.  I am going to breathe.  In. Out.  In.  Out.  I am going to take a moment to look outside and see what kinds of birds are flying above the building.  What is outside YOUR window right now?  What do you see?  Seriously.  Stop.  Look.  And Comment.  WHAT DO YOU SEE OUTSIDE.  This is a good way to stop the rat race called your life, if only a moment.

Here is what I see:

I see my shell from Corolla, with my sun catcher hanging from it.  At about 4:00 in the summer I get rainbows from the crystal all over my desk. There is also a mermaid sticker on the window, as well as a crunched up piece of paper from our printer that I call a “window shade.”  The sky is cloudy with almost no birds, but the clouds are soft and low to the ground today.  WHAT DO YOU SEE???  Stop, look and post. What is outside your window?  If you have never commented before, let this be the time for your first.  OK, you know the drill.  Stop, breathe, look outside, post.