My wife tagged me in a social media post this morning about actually getting gas before she was on E. It’s a running joke with her as everytime and I mean EVERYTIME I get into her car she has about 20-30 miles before she’s on E. So, the joke also has a touch of if you run out of gas I’m not coming to pick you up as a I told you so. Her post got me to thinking about how often in life that is how we approach our day. We run on almost E and try to go for as long as possible.
We do have intentions of filling-up but things happen, we get busy, we forget or we get distracted. Time and money also come into play. We try to wait until the price is lower or we’ll drive out of our way to save a few cents. When in actuality we spend more time and money to try and save a few cents. How many times in your life have you said, “I’ll wait till tomorrow”, “I’ll wait until a better time” to ask that question or to say Hi to that person you care about. What happens if there’s no tomorrow. Is there really ever a better time? The future is not guaranteed. We may run out of gas. Our time card may expire. We could break down along the way. We find ourselves in those times filled with regret, with sorrow and more doubts. You never know what’s going to happen as much as we think we can navigate to the future there’s going to be issues and roadblocks along the way.
Some people function better when they are almost on empty. They use the nervous energy to push themselves to go further and try to dodge the hurdles placed in front of them. They try to extend themselves longer they they should. In some cases they will make it to the next gas station and other times they will run out of gas. Others won’t let their tank get below half a tank. They constantly are stopping taking the time to ensure they will be able to get where their going. They watch their tank to the point that sometimes they lose sight of things around them. They miss things or events focusing on that next fill up. Some will go easy and take the extra steps to prolong that full tank. I find myself at times falling into all three categories. I want to maintain my full tank for as long as possible, but find myself running to things for the boys and myself. I know life isn’t going to slow down, so I try my best to maintain that half a tank to cherish the time, the people and events happening in my life. Then I end up missing something or find myself running too much before realizing I’m about on E.
Some get depressed watching that full line drop. We feel when the tank is full we can go anywhere and do anything. If we can take that approach in our day-to-day then it opens us up for more opportunities. I know we can’t face everyday with a full tank. Sickness, life and other issues come up. My wife and several of our friends who commented on her post dance with the almost empty card. It’s that can I make it further than what the gauge says thought. Can I push myself further then what my body is telling me. Will I push through or will I stop. Can I enjoy this moment and time longer before I ran out of gas? Age is starting to sit in, I have no problem with where I’m at. However, I struggle with the idea that my kids are another day closer to being on their own and I’m another day closer to not having some family and friends in my life as their tank is almost on E and there no refills left.
I hope you have the time to fill up today. If life is too busy enjoy that half a tank for as long as possible. When it comes to riding on E and coasting into the next station on fumes I hope you have someone special there with you to laugh, to cry and help you push if you need it. If you see my wife and she has ran out of gas, pick her up.
Enjoy your day and your tank!
TCB