Dude, Where's My Car?

"Dude, Where’s My Car?"  I have said this to myself on a few occasions over the last 6 months as I have exited my workplace only to find an empty parking space.  It usually occurs when I have just hung up the phone with someone and told them that I was on my way.  I hurriedly step out of the door and then….SCREEEEEECH…”Dude, Where’s My Car?”  Oh yeah, Krystal has it this afternoon!  This hasn’t happened often, because we have a fairly steady schedule.  However, there are times when Krystal needs the car on a day that’s out of the ordinary and that’s when it tends to happen.  We have been doing this for 6 months and this has only happened a few times.  It is inconvenient, but not that big of a deal. 

If you would have told me 6 months ago that the “Dude, Where’s My Car?” experiences and having to downsize while packing for a two night camping trip would be the only memorable inconveniences that I would experience on this one car journey, I would not have believed you. 

This 6 month period has given me time to reflect on life and the choices that we make.  We often go through life making choices based upon what we see others do or what we perceive others think about us.  Our homes, cars, clothes, hobbies, etc. don’t always reflect who we are, but often who we want others to think we are or, ultimately, who we want to be.  It reminds me of the Styx song “The Grand Illusion”….  

 But don't be fooled by the radio, the TV or the magazines
They'll show you photographs of how your life should be
But they're just someone else's fantasies
So if you think your life is complete confusion
'Cause you never win the game
Just remember that it's a grand illusion
And deep inside we're all the same
We're all the same

You would think that anyone who has taken a basic Marketing course in college would see through “The Grand Illusion”; yet we get tripped up by our own pride and our desire to “be somebody”.  Beyond the life is like high school mentality, we are constantly on the prowl for comfort, a/k/a luxury.  We often have these things driving us as we make decisions.  Time and time again, we find that the material things that we thought would bring lasting joy only bring fleeting happiness.  Why do we continue down the road that leads to disappointment, without ever trying anything different? 

We chose to try something a little different.  It hasn’t been convenient all of the time and it hasn’t always been comfortable, but we have learned more about ourselves from trying something different than we ever would have by not challenging ourselves and just following the crowd.  We are half-way through our 1 year experiment and we are glad that we have made this choice for this season in our life. 

My encouragement to you…Step out of your comfort zone.  Be different.  It's worth it!