Past the end of my nose

In this Texas heat, it is not surprising for a car to break down in some way in the car pick up line. However, I was surprised at the number of people that got “stuck” behind the car in trouble because they weren’t being observant. From my vantage point I watched as nearly half a dozen cars pulled up behind this poor woman. Did they really not notice all the cars that were going around this vehicle? It took multiple people directing traffic to keep the flow and avoid anymore “stuck” cars.

As I slowly inched through the line, I wondered how often we get caught up in our own stuff—how often I get caught up in my own world—and forget to look around us. Have I missed something obvious? Is there something I need to avoid? Is there something I should do? Yes, I admit I tend to have tunnel vision, though I prefer to call it focus, or even my responsibility.

You see one thing I do miss about high school was being able to go on a mission trip and not have to worry about other responsibilities (bills, kids, dogs). Yet those trips made me look beyond myself and think beyond myself. It is harder to go on a mission trip now (though I wouldn’t trade being a mom and wife for a minute), but I don’t have to. It is harder to get my eyes off all my responsibilities to think and look beyond myself. I don’t have to go far to make an impact, I just have to get past the end of my nose.