I like to think that Natalie and I are, “in the moment, pay attention to the little things,” kind of girls. If asked, I would say that we experience life deeply and expansively. However, events on a recent road trip told me that we can be goobers on automatic pilot, playing with silly putty and eating popcorn, as well as anybody else.
It all started because I do not like styrofoam coffee cups. Besides being bad for the environment, they make me feel like I’m spending time with a friend in the emergency room. I usually travel with my own well loved mug but this time I had forgotten it.
On checking into our hotel, I realized that although the mini kitchen had a 2 burner stove, microwave and a full fridge, there were no dishes…just styrofoam coffee cups.
This began a comical adventure of missteps in my journey for something worthy of my morning brew. We were in a small town with helpful locals, but they thought it was weird that a girl just wanted to buy 2 porcelain mugs instead of a set of dishes. One clerk even insisted I just buy some…..you guessed it, styrofoam coffee cups. Seriously, it took a trip to the tiniest Walmart I had ever seen, the oldest Kmart I had ever been in and finally success at the good ole Dollar General. I now had 2 large mugs with comfy, big handles. Perfection.
When I got back to the room, I began putting away my treasures and groceries. I noticed that the coffee pot was sitting a foot from the plug. I moved it within cord distance of the outlet only to see an engraved sign behind the pot that read, “CLEAN DISHES IN DISHWASHER”. I hadn’t even noticed that there was a dishwasher until that moment. I looked inside and sure enough, there was everything that 4 people could need to eat, drink and be merry, including 4 nice round, ceramic coffee mugs.
Really? I just spent the biggest part of the morning on a problem that could have been solved by moving the coffee pot? My first thought (after giving myself a smack on the head) was,“Why didn’t I truly investigate this tiny kitchen before going on a full out vision quest?” My second thought was “Wow, how many other things am I looking for in my life that are right in front of me if I would move something out of the way?” How many things am I doing the hard way because I’m not paying attention?”
For the rest of the trip we referred to anything we didn’t know or couldn’t find as, “Is this a LOOK BEHIND THE COFFEE POT MOMENT?” Is there anything that you are making into a big deal, when all you need to do is be in the moment and pay attention? What do you have hiding behind the coffee pot?